by Koko Brown
She held both the stack of papers and the flash drive up. “I really don’t care what you do in your spare time. But your conduct lately has been deplorable. You have not only been mistreating me, but other women too. I have no other choice but to step in and do something.”
“Something like what?”
“Actually, I’m going to give you a chance to get your life together. I think everyone deserves a second chance. In the next two weeks, I want you to get help and I have a referral list on one of these sheets. I also want you to leave Georgia and never come back.”
“Now you’re talking crazy. I don’t know what all you have on me, but I’ll fight it.”
“Really? Are you prepared to fight a sexual harassment class action suit? And do you really want me to release this video and the hundreds of photos I have of you and your misconduct?”
She tapped the flash drive against her cheek as she pretended to be in deep thought.
“Maybe you should dig back through your memory bank. Think Piedmont Park late one night a few weeks ago.” She shook her head. “Those photos alone are enough to let me know that I was right not to ever get involved with you. And there are so many more instances documented. You’re lucky I’m giving you a chance to get out of town. Not only will the DA kick you out on your ass, but you’ll be disbarred. Are you sure going after Laz is worth it?”
“I can’t believe you’re in here threatening me,” he seethed.
Yeah, she couldn’t believe it either. Maybe Laz had rubbed off on her, and it scared her to death how much she was enjoying watching Gabe squirm.
“Don’t think of this as a threat, Gabe. Think of it as me giving you a heads up on my future plans. It’s up to you to accept what I’m…proposing, or not, but once I walk out of here, the offer is off the table.”
Sitting in his Ford’s office, waiting for him to return from a meeting, Laz thought about the last two days of his life. He didn’t know why Hall had dropped the charges against him, but he had a feeling Journey had something to do with it. Maybe she had finally used the information he’d given her regarding Hall, revealing his extracurricular activities. Unfortunately, Laz hadn’t been able to find out for sure her involvement since she wouldn’t take his calls.
After calling her several times over the past couple of days, and getting her voicemail, she had finally answered a short while ago. Laz couldn’t say that he was surprised by her coldness, but it felt like a stab to the chest when she told him they needed a break. The whole conversation barely lasted two minutes before she said goodbye. Not only didn’t he get a chance to question her about Hall, but he also didn’t get the chance to tell her that he loved her.
Sitting in jail gave him plenty of time to think. The past month had been some of the best weeks of his life with her. Spending time with her every day and most of their nights together felt like the most natural thing in the world to him. That’s what he wanted going forward. She was who he wanted in his life.
With that decision made, he knew for sure he had to make some changes. The day of his release, he had returned to the anger management group that he had participated in off and on for the last few years. He had also smoothed things over with Mason Bennett and was being given a second chance to prove that he would make a helluva good security specialist. Now he was sitting in Ford’s office waiting to do something he should’ve done years ago.
“Usually when someone is suspended, they don’t show up at work,” Ford said as he walked into his office, slamming his door closed. He dropped down in his desk chair. “What are you doing here, Laz?”
“I came to apologize.”
Ford’s left brow lifted in disbelief. “Well that’s a first. All the shit you’ve pulled over the years and now you want to apologize?”
Laz shrugged. “I’m not sorry for none of that, but I am sorry for putting you in some compromising positions, especially this situation recently. I appreciate your support over the years.”
“Why do I have a feeling this little impromptu meeting is about more than an apology?”
Laz laid his badge and service weapon in the middle of Ford’s desk. “You’re finally going to be rid of me.” He grinned at Ford’s frown.
“Why now?”
“It’s time. Hell, it’s past time. I’m actually surprised you haven’t fired my ass before now.”
Ford chuckled. “Oh, I’ve thought about it more than once and had even started the paperwork at least a hundred times, but you’re a damn good cop, Laz. Shady as hell, but damn good.”
Laz laughed and stood. “Thanks, I think. Sorry for all the trouble, Sarg.”
“No you’re not.” Ford stood and extended his hand. “You’ll be missed, Lazarus. All the best to you. If you ever need anything—”
“You’ll be the first person I call. And if you ever need me to do any um…let’s just say, heavy lifting. You know where to find me.”
After saying his goodbyes to everyone, Laz left the precinct feeling lighter than he’d felt in a long time. He wouldn’t be starting work with Supreme Security for another four weeks, giving him plenty of time to get his new life on track. But first he had to win Journey and her trust back. She wasn’t going to make it easy for him, but he was up for the challenge.
FIFTEEN
Journey dragged herself out of her office and headed to the elevator, exhausted and dealing with a slow-building headache. She had gone back to working extra-long hours and like tonight, was one of the last people to leave the building. She hadn’t had a good night’s sleep in over a week, and until she got a grip on her caseload, she probably wouldn’t sleep. And then there was Laz.
She pushed the down button for the elevator and leaned against the wall. She couldn’t stop thinking about him. Maybe their separation would’ve been easier had she officially broken up with him. But sometime during their shared meals, lounging around chatting, and their steamy nights together, she had fallen in love. Every other thought was of him. Whenever she closed her eyes she saw him, and each time her phone rang, she prayed it was him and hoped it wasn’t.
I’m in love with Lazarus Dimas.
Instead of being happy about that realization, she was frustrated. Laz would never change and if she was honest with herself, she didn’t want him to, well at least not totally. He had shaken up her peaceful life, but had also been a bright light in her world. Yes he was a jerk sometimes, but he was her jerk. She hadn’t talked to him in five days and missed their silly arguments as well as the laughs.
Just let him go.
Journey rode the elevator to the ground level, and the moment she stepped off, her cell phone rang. Digging the device out of the side pocket of her handbag, Prentice’s name flashed across the screen.
“Hey, Prentice, hold on a sec.” She switched over to the Uber app to see if the black car she’d order was close by. Six minutes. “Okay, sorry about that. What’s up?”
“The murder weapon for the Monsuli case was signed out of evidence three weeks ago.”
“By who?”
“Carmen.”
“What? Wait, she’s been on medical leave since before that time,” Journey said wondering what Carmen had been up to.
“I know, Laz called me and—”
“Prentice, Laz is no longer with the police department. We’re done talking to him about this case.”
Prentice was quiet for so long, Journey thought that maybe the call had dropped until he spoke.
“Journey, just listen. You can even pretend that you don’t hear his name in this conversation, but there’s something you should know.”
“Fine. What’s happened?”
“Someone contacted Carmen a week before the accident and told her that if she didn’t make the weapon disappear, they would hurt her ten-year-old daughter.”
Journey stood speechless just inside the door that led outside. She thought back on the last time she’d had any interaction with Carmen and could remember Carmen being distracted and anxious.
Journey assumed she was struggling with a case.
“Carmen was told that if she went to the police, they’d kill her and her daughter.”
“Oh my, God. Is her daughter okay?”
“She immediately sent her to Florida where her brother lives, and before she could figure out what to do about the threat, the accident happened.”
Journey felt sick to her stomach at what her friend must be going through. “That explains why she hasn’t returned my calls and why she didn’t answer her door when I stopped by yesterday.”
“She’s terrified Journey. She finally broke down and contacted Laz. He had helped her with a situation with her ex-husband years ago and thought he’d know what to do in this situation. She said that she just hated that she didn’t think to call him sooner.”
“Where is she now?”
“Laz is taking her to a safe house as we speak. He said he called me since he couldn’t reach you.”
Laz to the rescue again.
Tears swelled in Journey’s eyes. He always seemed to be there and know what to do when people needed him.
I should’ve just answered his call.
He had left a voice message saying they needed to talk, but she assumed it was about their relationship, not the case.
“Not sure how Laz did it and he wouldn’t tell me, but where he’s taking Carmen, she’ll have personal security until after the trial. Oh and Carmen gave him the knife. He just dropped it off to me. I know you said you wanted the weapon tested again, but Journey that’s going to be useless. It’s contaminated with prints.”
Journey pinched the bridge of her nose. At this point, the chain of custody was broken and the weapon inadmissible. Besides that, she’ll never know if Laz had indeed planted the knife…or if Monsuli really did use it as the murder weapon.
“I don’t know what to say, Prentice. This case is going to be the death of me. Between witnesses backing out, tainted evidence, threats, people dying…I’m…I’m tired,” she said the last part more to herself.
“I know,” Prentice said with sympathy. “But we still have Melody Kane, the ex-mistress’s testimony. If we go to trial, her testimony will help.”
It might help, but it wouldn’t be enough.
Before Journey could respond to Prentice, she glanced outside and saw a black town car stop in front of the door.
“Prentice, I hate to cut this short, but my ride is here. I’ll call you when I get home. Better yet, let me call you tomorrow when my brain is fresh and I can form some solid questions.” Right now, all she wanted to do was go home and crash, but first she needed to talk to Laz.
Journey dropped her phone into her purse and headed for the car, feeling as if she’d gone through two spin cycles in a washing machine.
“Hi, you’re Craig?” she asked the driver when he opened the back door for her, remembering the driver’s name and his photo from the Uber app.
“Yes.” He smiled. Alarm bells went off inside her head when she realized he wasn’t the same person in the photo.
“Oh shoot, I think I left my files upstairs. I’ll be right…” she started, but before she could finish forming her lie, she felt a pin-prick in her neck. “Wha…” Panic roared through her body as her muscles stiffened and then her world went black.
Laz paced his living room floor, a two-finger glass of whiskey in his hand and frustration gnawing on his last nerve. He’d been trying to reach Journey for the past couple of hours and she still hadn’t returned his call. Even stopping by her condo had proved to be useless.
“This shit is ridiculous.” He had honored her wishes of giving her some space, but now that he knew more about what had happened with Carmen, the deal was off. She wasn’t safe.
Laz slowed and sipped the dark liquid, gritting his teeth at the burn slithering down his throat. He had returned an hour ago from getting Carmen settled into one of Mason’s safe houses. His new boss had really come through for him, even assigning a security specialist to look after her when Laz explained the situation. Originally, Laz thought that Monsuli might’ve been behind the threats to Carmen, but now he wasn’t so sure. Any number of people could have wanted that knife to disappear, including Laz.
Laz finished off his drink and set his empty tumbler on the table, his mind on Journey. As long as she was on the Monsuli case, she wasn’t safe. If only he knew where she was, he could explain this to her.
“First she has to call me back,” he grumbled.
His cell phone rang and he shot across the room to retrieve it, only to see Unknown Caller on the display. That had been the third call from an unknown number in the past thirty minutes.
Instead of going back to pacing, he sat on the sofa. Two minutes later, when the phone rang again, he answered.
“Yeah.”
“Detective Dimas, or should I just refer to you as Mr. Dimas? You’re a hard man to reach.”
Laz remained silent, trying to place the voice. Only his closest friends and some of his cop buddies had his cell number.
“Who is this?” he finally asked.
“That’s not important. What is important is that we have a mutual interest in seeing Enrique Monsuli dead.”
Laz froze, his mind racing. “You’re going to have to tell me who this is, otherwise this conversation is over.”
“See that’s the thing. You don’t want to hang up on me. From what I’ve heard, your reach is long and wide. Perfect for making my problem, and your problem of Monsuli’s possible release, go away. Trust me, it’s in your best interest to see to Monsuli’s death.”
Unease crept through Laz’s veins and he leaned forward. “In my best interest… How so?”
“Well, I have in my possession the beautiful ADA, who I’ve heard is important to you. I’ll see to her taking her last breath if Monsuli isn’t dead within the next twenty-four hours.”
Laz’s heart stopped. His gut churned with dread as he slowly stood on shaky legs. There was no way they had snatched Journey. No way. At least that’s what he told himself in order to tap down the rage brewing inside him.
“Do we have a deal?”
“Hell no we don’t have a deal!” he snapped, every nerve in his body wound tighter than the seal on a steel drum. “I want proof of life. Put her on the phone. Now!” Several excruciating seconds ticked by.
“Laz.” Laz’s legs gave out and he dropped to his knees upon hearing her voice. The anguish in that one word had him ready to rip the city apart to find her.
“Journey,” he croaked, barely recognizing his own voice. “Are you okay? Did they hurt you?”
“No, but I’m…I’m…” Her voice broke and his heart split in two when she sobbed.
“Aw, baby, don’t cry. I’m going to take care of this, and I promise I’m going to find you. Just know that I love you.” He heard her soft gasp and another sob. “I love you so damn much.”
After a few sniffles, she said, “I love you, too.” Her voice sounded a little stronger as if trying to pull herself together. “Please…don’t do anything that—”
“Okay, you talked to her. Now get it done.”
Laz leaped up. “Motherfucker you have just made the biggest mistake of your life! You want to know how far my fucking reach is? Your ass will find out if anything happens to her!”
“Twenty-four hours. You take care of Monsuli and your girl will be released unharmed. It’ll be a win-win for both you and me if you make this shit with Monsuli disappear. The only way to do that is if he’s dead.”
When the line disconnected, Laz yelled and picked up his empty whisky tumbler and hurled it across the room. The loud crash resulted in splinters of glass bouncing off the pale wall raining shards onto the carpet.
“Nooo!” he screamed, the realization of what was happening hitting him like a two-by-four to the head. He collapsed onto the sofa, desperation consuming him.
Breathe. Just breathe.
He sat for a few minutes, still feeling as if strong hands were wrapped around h
is neck and applying pressure. He needed answers. More importantly, he needed to find Journey.
Think, Laz. Think.
Whoever snatched her knew him well. They also probably knew his history with Monsuli, and if they knew he used to be a cop, they had to know the type of shit he used to inflict on drug dealers. And more importantly, they knew he would crawl to the ends of the earth for Journey.
Twenty-four hours.
SIXTEEN
Journey jerked awake and tensed when a piercing pain shot from the top of her head to the base of her neck. Sitting in an uncomfortable wood chair, every muscle in her body ached. It didn’t help that there was a gag in her mouth, and her hands and ankles were bound with rope too tight to budge.
She blinked several times, trying to get past the sleep still clogging her mind. Her eyes finally adjusted to the poor lighting. She might’ve been in a haze when they put her in the room, but she would have remembered the flat screen television sitting on a roll-away stand several feet in front of her now.
The night’s events flashed through her mind. She had no idea where she was or who the kidnappers were since they kept their faces covered. Even when they let her talk to Laz.
I love you. I love you so damn much.
Laz’s words floated through her mind on a continuous loop. She knew she had fallen in love with him, but she never thought she’d hear those words from him. He had totally caught her off guard.
Now he might be risking his freedom and his life…for her. The people who took her promised not to hurt her, as long as Laz saw to Monsuli’s death. There was no way he could do what they asked of him without ramifications. She could admit to wanting the whole Monsuli case to go away, but not like this. Not at the risk of losing Laz.
Journey startled when the television suddenly came on. Her heart beat faster as a picture of Monsuli covered the television screen and breaking news scrolled beneath the photo.