Gridlocked (Bounty County Series Book 3)

by Maren Lee

  “Thanks, Wess.” Lane smiled and shut the door on him.

  “Okay, so you didn’t lock it when you got back to Wesson’s.”

  “I didn’t. I don’t remember Wesson doing it. But we were distracted and I knew where the evening was headed so my stomach was a nervous pit.”

  “Hmmmmmm.”

  “What are you thinking, Lane?” Please have an idea. Please.

  “Did you see anything weird? Hear anything weird?”

  “I don’t know. Before we walked in the house I heard a dog barking a ways down the street. And it sounded like someone a few houses down was having a party in the back yard.” Could that be a lead? Molly wondered.

  “What about once you got in the house?”

  Hmmmmmmm.

  “I was a little...busy...once we got inside the house.”

  What about that flash of light?

  “Oh! Lane! When I was...um...having an orgasm, I saw a flash of light out the window. I thought at the time that maybe it was, you know...the orgasm being that good... But I’m thinking now that it was definitely like a flashlight or something like that.”

  “Hmmmmmm,” Lane said again. “Hear a door slam?”

  “I was kind of screaming a bit, so no. Damn.”

  “Damn. I mean, good on you. But damn. Okay, and then Cole and Justin showed up a little bit later.”

  “Yeah.”

  “Okay. We have the timeline. I have some neighbors to talk to. Don’t worry. I’ll get Sierra and Chloe on this with me.”

  Molly laughed. “Seriously?”

  “I’m calling in reinforcements to get you out of here!”

  “When can I get out of here?”

  “Probably not until Monday. No bail hearings til 9 am.”

  “Oh my god! Are you serious? It’s Friday night!”

  “You’ll be in a cell by yourself. Probably just the holding cell here in the office. They aren’t going to put you in the real jail! We’ll come visit you. Wesson isn’t gonna leave your side except to investigate this shit. You’ll be fine here.”

  There was a knock at the door and it swung open. Jake.

  “Hey, ladies,” he flashed his dimples at Lane. If Molly weren’t smitten with Wesson, she’d be seriously swooning at the large man standing in the doorway.

  “Jake, you can’t just barge in here. I’m with a client.” Lane smiled back at him. She loved busting his balls.

  “We know Molly didn’t do it, this won’t even get past next week.” Jake offered Molly a reassuring smile.

  Molly felt relief hearing that.

  “Maybe you can talk to your dick best friend and tell him he’s a dick because now Molly is gonna have to spend the weekend in jail without any dick!” Lane was pissed.

  “Justin is a total asshole. No arguing with you there. But he’ll apologize. And don’t worry, I’m on all weekend. So’s Wesson. So’s Ryan. We’ll keep her company and bring in pizza contraband,” he winked.

  Well, that makes me feel better.

  “I like pepperoni,” Molly grinned.

  “You got it.”

  Lane cleared her throat. “Jake, who is with Bennett right now?”

  “I left him home alone with a knife and a rusty piece of scrap metal to chew on. He’s fine.”

  If there was one thing Molly knew about her friends’ relationship, even though Lane liked to bust Jake’s balls, Jake was the master at busting Lane’s.

  “Shut up. Who did you call?”

  “No one. Katie showed up at the door and asked if she could stay the weekend. I said ‘yes, so long as you watch Bennett right now so I can go meet my wife at the station.’ He was asleep already. She’ll be fine with him.”

  “I’m not worried about her watching Bennett. She’s a freakin’ nurse now.”

  “Okay, so see? I came here to escort you home after you’re done interrogating your client.”

  “You interrogate. I interview.”

  “Every day with you is an interrogation,” Jake mumbled. Lane glared at him. “That I love so much,” Jake quickly added as he walked out the door and shut it behind him, whistling.

  Molly couldn’t help but laugh. The look on Lane’s face bothered her, though. “What’s wrong?”

  “Just wondering what Katie is doing in town. She’s been...secretive lately. Just dropping in without warning. She lives in Billings now. I don’t mind, but I also wouldn’t mind a bit of warning. I wonder what’s going on.”

  “Maybe she has a secret boyfriend in Imminence?” Molly raised her eyebrows.

  “Oh god,” Lane groaned. “Jake would kill everyone in this town if they touched his baby sister, so we better hope that’s not what is going on.”

  “She’s a grown woman. You said yourself that she’s a nurse now. Can’t she have a boyfriend?”

  “No. I try. I really do try to get through that thick skull of his. But it’s his baby sister,” Lane shrugged. “He’s very protective. No one will ever be good enough for her.”

  Poor girl.

  “Okay. So. I’m gonna go ask some questions around town. They’ve already dusted your car and the brick for fingerprints. We’ll figure this out, Molly. I’ll be in touch tomorrow.”

  They got up and hugged and then Lane left her alone in the room. Alone again. Molly sighed. She couldn’t wait for this weekend to be over.

  ➰

  “Brenden, no. This is fucking bullshit!” Wesson hung up the phone. Fucking smart phones. He wanted to slam it down. But all he could do was hit the “End Call” button with his thick fingers. It wasn’t nearly as dramatic as he’d wanted. Well, hopefully I still have a job tomorrow.

  He was putting on a brave face for Molly, but Wesson was losing his fucking mind. Just calm down and wait for fingerprints, Brenden had said. Easy for Brenden to say. Sierra wasn’t in jail all weekend. If this had happened to Sierra, she wouldn’t be spending a second in jail.

  They’d finally officially booked Molly. Mug shot. God damn, she’s beautiful. Fingerprints. They put her in the holding cell. It was still in the Sheriff’s office, but it was breaking his heart. He told her to get some rest, as well as she could, on the tiny cot. He’d grabbed her an extra blanket and promised to avenge her honor. She’d smiled at that through watery eyes.

  Wesson walked out of the station and hopped in his patrol rig. His phone rang again. Lane.

  “Whatcha got for me, Lane?”

  “I love it when you’re on my side, Wesson.” He could hear her grinning through the phone.

  “Maybe you should switch sides, then?” Wesson proposed, already knowing the answer.

  “Fuck no.” There it is. Lane would never be a prosecutor. She’d told him so a million times. He still didn’t understand how she could do what she did, but he respected her for it.

  “You find something already?” It was just after 1 a.m., but he was not at all surprised she’d already started her investigation. Lane was a bulldog. She also had a love-hate relationship with Justin, so Wesson knew that the fact that Justin had been a part of the team arresting Lane’s friend/client just made her want to work even harder.

  “No, but Jake and I talked to the neighbors that were partying two houses down from yours. They’re still partying, so they’re a little shifaced, but one of the guys was out smoking on the front porch and definitely saw someone he’d never seen before walking down the sidewalk around 10 pm. Older gentleman. Caucasian. Average height. Slightly overweight. What time did the tip come in?”

  “Cole said 10:30. We’d been home a little under an hour by then. This witness see anyone get into Molly’s car?”

  “Nope. Said he finished his cigarette and walked in the house. Totally kicking myself right now for telling Jake not to waste money installing a video security system on your house because a bunch of cops lived in it.” Jake was the property manager for the sweet little old lady who owned the house Wesson and his roommates lived in. Even though Ja
ke didn’t live with them anymore, he was still up in their face about keeping it nice.

  “No, you’re right, Lane. Who would be crazy to fuck with a house full of cops?”

  “Someone who doesn’t know a bunch of cops live there.”

  Good point.

  “Well, I can’t question anyone else in the middle of the night, so I’m gonna head home and then I’ll round up the girls tomorrow. Should we all meet at the Prospector at 8 a.m. and discuss next steps in the investigation?” The Prospector was one of the local coffee shops. Best coffee in town, in Wesson’s opinion.

  “The girls?”

  “Yeah, I’m getting Sierra and Chloe involved. We’re the Three Musketeers. All for one, one for all. Molly is D'artagnan right now. You know.”

  What the fuck is she even talking about? Wesson shook his head. “This does not get back to Brenden and Justin, okay? But shit. I guess in this case, the more the merrier. I’ll bring Ryan.”

  “Cool, get some rest.”

  “You too.”

  Wesson chuckled when he hung up the phone. He didn’t mind the extra help, but with those crazy chicks, he just might have a shit show on his hands.

  ➰

  “Oh. For. Sure. Justin. Is. Cut. Off.” Chloe fist bumped Lane.

  “You ladies are so going to get me in trouble,” Wesson acknowledged.

  “Whatever. You know Justin would do the same thing. He broke a shit ton of protocol when I got kidnapped. Don’t worry about him.”

  “I can handle Justin. It’s Brenden I’m worried about,” Wesson cringed.

  “Don’t worry about Brenden, Wesson. He tries anything, I’ll cut him off too,” Sierra asserted with a flip of her hair.

  “You can’t solve all of my problems by cutting your husbands off in the bedroom,” he said, incredulously.

  “Yes, we can,” Sierra and Chloe responded confidently in unison.

  “I’m a little bit better at it than Chloe, though,” Sierra pointed at her cousin. “This one has trouble saying no to his dick.”

  Chloe shrugged. “Yeah, but he’s never arrested my friend before, let alone treated her like a fucking criminal! Don’t worry. I’ll take one for the team.”

  “Oh my god, you ladies are nuts.”

  “Jake’s on your side, so you know you have backup there,” Lane chimed in.

  The bells on the front door sounded and Ryan walked in with a little bit of pep in his step. The man was whistling like he’d gotten laid this morning. Ugh. Wesson was immediately sad that he missed out on morning sex with Molly. Morning sex. Must save Molly so that we can have morning sex.

  Sierra whistled. “How is Ryan still so fine?” Apparently she was serious.

  “He’s like fifty-seven-and-three-quarters years old or something, Sierra,” Wesson replied.

  Sierra busted up laughing at Wesson's very precise guess. I'm sure that's close. “That’s what I’m saying. How on earth is he still so fine? Modern marvel.” She made a tsk tsk sound.

  Ryan pulled up a chair to their table. “Reinforcements?” he asked Wesson.

  “Yep, this is our investigative team. They’re going to comb the neighborhood. Ask questions. Any leads, we’ll follow up. We’re waiting for the fingerprints to come back on the car door and the drugs - probably won’t see that until next week from the lab. But there are only a few known places ‘round here where you can get a brick of heroin, so I thought we’d do some surveillance.”

  “Sounds like a plan. Let me get my coffee and let’s get on the road.”

  He turned and walked toward the counter and all three girls followed his ass as he walked away.

  “Oh my god. Your husbands are going to seriously flay me. This better be worth it.”

  “What? Flay? Fillet?” Chloe asked. Wesson rolled his eyes. He knew what “flay” meant and he didn't want that to happen to him either. “Whatever, Wesson. We can look, we just can’t touch.”

  Wesson groaned again. “Call me the second you hear or find something worthwhile and we’ll be by to question formally.”

  “Be careful if you’re going to a known Ruiz hotspot, Wesson. You won’t be any use to Molly if you’re dead,” Lane said quietly as she touched his arm.

  “Don’t worry about us. We got this.”

  The girls grabbed their coffees and walked out. A few minutes later, Ryan returned. “You ready to get this show on the road, partner?” Ryan asked.

  “You know it. We’ll touch face later, ladies.”

  The girls rolled their eyes and smiled. Was it something I said?

  ➰

  “So. You got a girl, Ryan?” Wesson asked. They’d been sitting in front of a deserted warehouse in an unmarked county car for a few hours with no activity. Ryan had been texting all morning, seemingly consumed by his phone, and Wesson was bored. He knew Ryan was divorced, but never asked him if he had a girlfriend, so he figured now was as good a time as any.

  Ryan cleared his throat. “That’s kind of a tough question to answer right now. I have a, um, a friend. But we are just friends. Nothing serious. We haven’t even really discussed exclusivity. But I don’t have time for anything more and I certainly have no plans to make anything official.”

  “Anyone I know?”

  Ryan shrugged. “She doesn’t live in Imminence.” Interesting response.

  “How long you been divorced?”

  “Five years. We’re past the ‘can’t stand the sight of your face’ phase and have moved on to the ‘supportive co-parenting phase.’ She’s got a new man in her life. He’s a nice guy. I hate that he sees my kids more than me, but Erica got a great job in Helena a few years ago working for the state legislature and I just couldn’t say no to her taking my kids with her. She’s a great mom and I have a weird schedule. So I try to fly up there once a month. She’s pretty flexible, so I can’t complain too much.”

  “How old are your kids?”

  “My son is twelve and my daughter is fifteen. They’re great kids,” he beamed.

  Wow. Young kids for a 59-year-old.

  “Ever thought of moving to Helena?”

  “Every damn day. I miss my kids, man.”

  “Why don’t you go?”

  “I need a job to open up there first. Please don’t tell Brenden this. He was super awesome for finding me a spot with you guys. But jobs in Helena have been slim pickings for two years and I just haven’t been able to land anything.”

  “I’d never say anything to the boss man. I’d be sad to see you go, but wouldn’t blame you one bit.”

  The door to the warehouse opened.

  “Hold up,” Wesson whispered.

  A man exited the warehouse with a bag thrown over his shoulder. Nothing super suspicious, but this was a pretty deserted area outside of Imminence, so Wesson immediately focused. There was no car outside of the warehouse, so where was this guy going?

  The man looked at his watch. Wesson wasn’t close enough to tell how nice the watch was, but he could definitely tell it was a large piece of jewelry. The man was also wearing a black suit in middle of summer. If the guy hadn’t looked like he was standing there waiting for the city bus, Wesson would have clocked him as a ringleader of some sort.

  A red Corvette flew by Wesson and Ryan and screeched to a halt.

  “Mr. Big’s ride has arrived,” Ryan commented. Clearly his 65-year-old partner was having the same thought. Mr. Big got into the Corvette and it pulled away.

  “I can’t catch a ‘vette in this piece of shit, but let’s give them some space and see how long we can follow them,” Wesson wondered how long his plan would work. His question was answered in about thirty seconds. The Corvette was a ghost.

  Ryan laughed. “Well, there goes that plan.”

  “Fuck. Okay, plan B. Lunch? I want to go back to the station and make sure Molly’s okay. Then we’ll hit the creeper house on the other side of town?”

  “Sounds like a plan. You mind drop
ping me off at my place on your way to the station and then coming back for me before we head across town? I got a few things I need to take care of today.”

  “Sure, man. No problem. Anything I can help you with?”