“Yes.”
He shoved me toward the store.
My heart pounded against my chest as we made our way through the doors and toward the pharmacy department. My mind drifted back to my conversation with Dad. Less than an hour after arguing with him that the city was safe, someone was trying to kill me over imaginary money. If I died today, he’d probably engrave “I told you so” on my tombstone.
I wasn’t about to let that happen. Especially not now, after all Addison had gone through to clear my name. She’d be so pissed if some asshole shot me right before her big dinner. The dinner I was supposed to go to with Asher. Wearing that dress. I couldn’t die before he saw me in that dress. As much as I hated to admit it, I was looking forward to watching his eyes bug out of his head and his tongue roll out of his mouth to hit the floor like Roger Rabbit.
I prayed for a long line at the pharmacy counter.
Thankfully there was an elderly couple in front of me. They had to pick up a whole bag full of medications and apparently some were new, because the pharmacist was called over to give a consultation.
Sweat was beading on my forehead. How would this goon react when he realized I didn’t have a prescription, much less a heart problem? Worried the authorities wouldn’t see us all the way in the back, my whole body was shaking when I glanced over my shoulder.
“Hey. What’s going on?” the gunman asked.
“I feel like I’m gonna pass out. I really need my medicine.”
That’s when the boys in blue showed up. I saw them in my peripheral, so I tugged away from my captor and hit the deck.
Gunfire erupted.
The last thing I thought of as I dropped to the floor was that damn green dress. Then everything went black.
* * *
Addison
I stared at Jake across the table and smiled. We’d just received our lunch order and he was sharing a funny story about his brother... his father had caught them smoking when they were in their mid-teens and forced them to smoke an entire pack of cigarettes. Well, at least, as many as they could smoke until they threw up.
As I giggled over the shenanigans the boys got into, an alarm went off on Jake’s phone. He tensed and studied the display.
“Where’s Dylan?” he asked. “Was she planning on going somewhere?”
I shrugged. “Not that I know of. Why? What’s wrong?”
He dropped forty dollars on the table. “We have to go. Now.”
My heart raced. “What’s going on with Dylan?” I asked.
Instead of answering, he put the phone to his ear and listened, gesturing for me to follow. I grabbed my purse and jacket, and we hurried out of the restaurant.
The radio in his car was going crazy when we climbed in. Jake set his phone down and cranked the dial in time for us to hear, “…all available units to the corner of Lovejoy and northwest Thirteenth. All available units. We have a possible hostage situation in Safeway. Suspect is armed.”
“Hostage situation?” I asked, unable to believe my ears. Why had Jake asked about Dylan? Was she connected? “Is Dylan the hostage?”
Something else came over the radio, but I was too busy freaking out to hear what was said.
“Not sure what’s going on, but I need to listen.”
I bit my lip and nodded. Hostage? Who would take Dylan hostage? Why? In Safeway? Feeling worried and helpless, I pulled out my phone and fired off a quick text to Asher, letting him know he needed to get his butt to the downtown Safeway right away.
By the time we arrived, I couldn’t hold back my tears anymore, although I was able to keep my sobbing to a minimum.
Cop cars with flashing lights and ambulances (three of them), were blocking two streets and various uniformed people were behind the safety of their vehicles, some with guns drawn, others watching the front of the store. One of the ambulances took off as we pulled in.
Jake turned to me and stroked my tears away with his thumb. “Stay here. I’ll find out what’s going on, but I need you to stay in the car.”
I nodded.
“She’s gonna be okay, sweetheart. Okay?”
I nodded again, but didn’t really believe him as he climbed out of the car. I grabbed my purse, pulled my gun out, and unlatched the safety. He had five minutes and then I was going in.
As I sat in Jake’s car, everything was eerily quiet. It was so quiet, my shallow, quick breathing sounded more like wheezing. I forced myself to take a few deep breaths as I waited. I noticed a drop of water... just one... land on the windshield and slide down to touch the wiper, and I waited. I checked my watch... two minutes. I sighed and glanced back out the window. Nothing was happening. How could so much be riding on absolutely no activity?
My phone pealed, breaking the silence and about causing me to jump out of my skin. Asher’s photo flashed across the screen so I hit talk and put it to my ear. “Ashey.”
“I’m on my way. What’s happening?” he asked.
“I don’t know. I’m in Jake’s car. There’s a hostage situation at the downtown Safeway, and I think Dylan’s the hostage.”
“What? What were you guys doing this time?”
“Nothing. I swear. I was about to turn all our evidence over to Jake. He and I were at lunch when he got the call.”
“Evidence as in the spreadsheet?” Asher asked.
“Hmm. Yeah. And a recording Dylan got.”
“What?!”
“Asher, I love you but I can’t talk about this right now because I’m kinda worried about my friend being a freakin’ hostage in Safeway. Where the hell are you?”
He took a deep breath. “You’re right. Sorry. I’m… I’ll be there soon.”
He disconnected, and I put my hand on the door, determined to find out what the hell was going on. Just as I pulled the handle, Jake appeared between two cruisers, jogging toward me. I relatched the safety on my gun and shoved it in my purse, then jumped from the car. “What’s going on? Is Dylan okay?”
“She’s on her way to the hospital. There was some gunfire—”
“She was shot?” I screamed, and made a run for the remaining ambulances.
Jake caught me and pulled me to his chest. “She’s fine, Addison, and she’s not in there. She whacked her head and knocked herself out. It’s just a concussion.”
“What?” I gestured at the cop cars and ambulances. “All this… for a concussion?”
“No. There was a gunman. But Dylan hit her head when she fell.”
“Why did she fall?” I demanded, worried he was shielding me from the truth. “Did he shoot her?”
“No, Addison. We don’t know the details yet, but it sounds like she tripped trying to get away from the shooter.”
Okay, that was totally Dylan. It would be just like her to trip and fall, especially in a high-stress situation like a gunfight at the Okay Corral. “Where is the shooter?”
Jake frowned. “He slipped out the back. We got a description, though, and his face will be on every news channel within the hour. We’ll find him.” He draped an arm over my shoulders and squeezed me to him.
I stayed in the safety of Jake’s arms for a minute, processing this new information. Dylan had been held hostage. Why? Did some random guy just draw a gun on her in the middle of the grocery store? Or did this have something to do with Kirk’s murder? If so, the shooter could be on his way to the hospital to finish the job. I pulled away. “Jake, I need to get to the hospital.”
“Okay. Just let me make sure everything’s secure here and I’ll take you.”
He didn’t understand. Dylan was unconscious and vulnerable, and the shooter could beat up a cop, steal his clothes, sneak past security, and… and… I really needed to get to the hospital.
I was about to call a cab when Asher drove up.
Dylan
WHEN I CAME to, I could feel my heartbeat in the side of my head, and it felt like I was moving. Something was wrapped snug around my neck. My head lifted for a moment, and straps came down on
the side of my face, holding something in place. My breathing sounded funny. People spoke around me, but their words didn’t make sense. Someone sniffled.
Wondering what the hell was going on, I opened my eyes. Bad idea. Overhead lights blinded me, increasing the pain to a nausea-inducing level. I swallowed back bile and squeezed my eyes shut.
“Just lay back and relax,” someone said… a male, calming voice. I didn’t recognize it.
Broken memories flooded my mind. Fear. A gun pressing into my ribs. The Safeway sign. An elderly couple in front of me at the pharmacy counter. I struggled to make sense of it all.
“Where am I?” I asked. My voice sounded muffled, as if I were talking through a tube. Squinting through the pain I tried to sit up, but straps kept me from moving.
“You fell and hit your head. We’re taking you to the hospital to get checked out. Just relax.”
I fell and hit my head?
My head throbbed, but I couldn’t move my hand to feel for damage. I was jostled forward, down an aisle, then through a doorway until the grey Portland sky was overhead. It hurt too much to keep squinting so I closed my eyes again, suddenly sleepy.
“We need you to stay awake,” the man said.
“I am awake. Just resting my eyes.”
He snickered. “All right. Keep talking to us then. What’s your name?”
It took me a moment to remember. “Dylan. Dylan James.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Dylan. I’m Tony. Liz is also here with me. We’re gonna get you to the hospital.”
A door shut, muffling the sounds of the city. A man had been trying to get me into his car. I suddenly remembered where I knew him from. Panicked, I tried to sit up again. Straps bit into my shoulders, forcing me still. My eyes sprang open again. I needed to talk to the cops. “Where are you taking me?”
It was darker. I blinked, letting my eyes adjust enough to make out an IV bag.
“The hospital,” Tony repeated.
Something pinched my arm.
The next time I opened my eyes, I was in a room. Machines beeped around me. Someone was squeezing my hand. I looked up to see Addison standing guard, concern etched into her face.
She took a deep breath and announced, “She’s awake.”
Asher’s face appeared above Addison’s shoulder. There was fear in his eyes, but he smiled. “Hey.”
“Hi,” I croaked. My throat felt dry. I pulled down the mask covering my mouth and nose so I could talk. “What’s going on?”
“What do you remember?” Asher asked.
“Can I have some water, please?”
Asher nodded and poured me a cup, guiding the straw to my lips. After taking a few precious sips, I told him what I could remember. Everything from my car’s flat tire to the cops showing up. “I... I… He was reaching for his gun, so I shoved him as hard as I could and threw myself down.”
Jake popped up on the other side of Addison. “And hit your head on an endcap, knocking yourself out in the process.” He shook his head, chuckling. “Probably the best thing that could have happened to you.”
It sure as hell didn’t feel like the best thing. “What do you mean?” I asked.
“If you were awake, he probably would have used you as a shield to get out of there. But he couldn’t exactly carry your unconscious body out of the store while fending off the cops. Knocking yourself out probably saved your life,” Jake said.
“I didn’t think about that.”
Addison squeezed my hand again. “I’m so thankful my bestie is a klutz.”
“Now about this money he was looking for…” Jake started.
“She just woke up,” Asher said, circling the bed to take my other hand. “Can’t we give her a few moments?”
“No.” Jake frowned.
Addison started to object, but he held his hands up.
“Look, we want to keep her safe. Her attacker is still out there, and God only knows how many other people he’s working with. If Dylan knows anything about whatever money they’re looking for, coming clean with us is the best chance she has of getting them off her back.”
A memory flitted through my mind. I reached for it, but only found pain. “Ow.”
“What is it?” Addison asked.
“There’s something. I’m trying to think, but it literally hurts right now.”
I closed my eyes and let my mind wander back to the store. The face of my attacker appeared. His familiar voice. The feel of his breath against my neck. The stab of the gun into my ribs. Back to his face. Crooked nose. Razor thin lips. I knew his face.
“I recognized the gunman,” I announced.
Jake’s eyebrows rose. “You did?”
“Yes. I don’t know his name, but he worked with me. He’s one of the security guards. He was there the day I got fired.”
“All right,” Jake said, typing something into his phone. “I’ll have Pike pull the security personnel records and we’ll get you some pictures to look through.”
“Also, I’m pretty sure his voice was one of the ones that Addison recorded in my apartment.”
“Good.” Jake nodded.
“I have no clue what money he was talking about though,” I said. “I only told him I did to buy time. I’m guessing it has something to do with the spreadsheet, though.”
“The spreadsheet you no longer have?” Jake asked.
I looked to Addison for help.
“Not exactly,” she said.
Jake’s expression hardened. “What?” he asked.
This time Addison looked to me. This is not how we planned the information exchange to go down, but based on my current situation, I was guessing we didn’t have much choice in the matter. I shrugged. “We might as well tell them everything.”
Wearing a stern, angry expression, Jake closed the door to my hospital room and got out his recorder. “Why don’t we start from the beginning?” he said. “And I need to remind you both that you can be charged with obstruction of justice for withholding information.”
I gulped and looked up at Asher, but he didn’t look too pleased with us either.
Jake set the recorder on my bed and clicked it on.
Since Addison was a lot more coherent than me, she began. Although she glossed over how we got the spreadsheet (making it sound like we found it in my backup files), she did hand the flash drive over to Jake.
“What else is on here?” Jake asked.
Addison glanced at me. When I didn’t talk, she said, “During Kirk’s funeral, Dylan recorded a conversation in the restroom.”
“You went to Kirk’s funeral?” Asher asked... now he sounded pissed. “What if the guys from Dylan’s apartment had been there? Do you have any idea how reckless that was?”
I winced at his tone.
“It wasn’t reckless,” Addison defended. “We wore disguises. Nobody would have known who we were.”
“I knew them the second I saw them,” Jake said, not helping our case at all.
“Yeah, but you’re a detective,” I pointed out. “I would’ve been concerned if you hadn’t recognized us.”
He nodded. “Nice cover. Now tell me about the conversation you overheard.”
“Our costumes had cameras hidden on them.” I squeezed Addison’s hand. “Addie’s idea. Although there’s no video—since I was hiding in the bathroom stall—it did catch the conversation. Kirk’s wife and his assistant were talking about some sort of deal.”
“His assistant?” Jakes eyes widened. “What sort of deal?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know, but it sounded like Bonnie was paying Michelle off for something.”
Jake asked a few more questions before clicking the recorder off and pocketing both it and the flash drive. Then Addison turned on him and said, “We told you everything we know. Now it’s your turn.”
Jake’s mouth became a hard line. “It doesn’t work like that, Addison.”
“It should,” she replied. “We’re all supposed to be working together
to keep Dylan out of jail.”
“I don’t work with civilians,” Jake replied, looking pointedly at my hospital bed. “Civilians who stick their noses in police business end up hurt.”
“That’s not fair,” I objected. “They think I know something I don’t know. The attack had nothing to do with our investigation.”
A vein popped out along Jake’s hairline, and his face took on a red tinge. “It’s not our investigation. It’s my investigation. And you two need to stay out of it before you get killed. Or before I have to arrest you both for obstructing justice.”
“We got you two really great leads,” Addison said, facing him. “Between them and the woman who was having drinks with Kirk, you should have—”
Jake’s expression hardened. “How do you know about that?”
Addison looked away.
“You don’t have to answer that, Addie,” Asher suggested. “At least not right now. You will need to explain yourself to me later.”
Jake ran a hand through his hair. “You listened in, didn’t you? At the funeral.” He shook his head. “I can’t believe this.”
“She’s my best friend and she’s innocent,” Addison replied, releasing my hand to grip the railing on my bed. “I’m going to do whatever I have to do to keep her out of jail.”
“Of course you are.” He stepped back, paced to the door, then turned around and paced back. “Is that why you keep asking me out? You want to use your charm in order to get information to help your friend?”
Addison froze. Her nostrils flared and little sparks of anger ignited in her eyes. “Are you asking me if I’m whoring myself out for my friend’s case?” she asked.
He held his hands in the air. “You’re the one who said you’d do whatever you had to do.”
“And you thought that meant…” She snapped her mouth shut and lowered her head. Tears filled her eyes. Uh-oh, she was taking this too far in her head and Jake was going to get the brunt of her drama.
“Blowfish, Addie,” Asher said.
In an attempt to minimize the collateral damage, I said, “I think you need to go, Jake,”
“Yeah, I think that’s a really good idea,” Addison said quietly. Lethally.
Dial A for Addison (S.A.F.E Detective Agency Book 1) Page 13