by Paige Tyler
Getting him a hot dog wasn’t enough for all he had done for her, though. She chewed on her lower lip as she tried to think of something else she could buy him—something a detective needed. He already had a gun, so she couldn’t get him one of those. Maybe a colorful tie to wear to work, or a pair of striped socks. A splash of red or green would go a long way to brightening up the ensemble he wore.
She was humming a holiday song that always played in the workshop back home when Ben came in. She looked up from the wires, chips and electronic test equipment in front of her and realized with surprise that it was almost noon. She’d been so wrapped up in what she was doing and thinking about Derek that she hadn’t realized how much time had passed.
“You’ve been working on that thing nonstop all morning,” Ben said. “Take a break and get something to eat. I don’t want Derek claiming I overworked you on your first day.”
Sosie opened her mouth to tell him elves worked much longer hours in between breaks, but bit her tongue when she realized what she’d almost let slip.
She laughed. “Now that you mention it, I am a little hungry. I’ll be back in a little while.”
On the way to the Derek’s apartment, she ran into Tracee and Linda.
“I thought you were at work,” Sosie said.
“We were,” Tracee said. “We came home for lunch. Want to join us?”
“I’d love to.”
Fifteen minutes later, they were seated around the table in the kitchen eating tuna sandwiches and drinking diet soda. Sosie was familiar with tuna, but never had it prepared with mayonnaise and served on bread. It was especially delicious that way.
“How is Operation Get-Derek-To-Fall-In-Love-With-You going?” Tracee asked, sipping her diet soda.
Sosie picked up the other half of her sandwich. “It’s going great. Or at least I think it is. If everything goes well tonight, he’s going to take a few days off from work so we can do some more sightseeing together.”
The redhead grinned. “That’s excellent. You’ll have him eating out of your hand soon.”
Sosie frowned. “Do I want that? I mean, it sounds messy.”
“You definitely want that,” Linda said. “You want him to be so crazy about you he barely knows which end is up. Men are much easier to manipulate that way, trust me.”
Sosie set down the sandwich and reached for her glass, her frown deepening. She didn’t want to think she was manipulating Derek, but that was exactly what she was doing by not being honest with him about who she really was. She tried to tell herself it didn’t matter, that it’d be easier to tell him she was an elf after he fell in love with her, but it did matter. Especially now that she knew was in love with him. Keeping something as important as her elfin heritage a secret from him was tearing her up inside.
Tracee reached across the table to cover Sosie’s hand with hers. “Hey, we were kidding about having Derek eating out of your hand. If that’s not your bag, you can always have a good, old-fashioned, honest relationship.”
Tears stung Sosie’s eyes. “I can’t.”
“Why not?” Linda asked.
She reached up to wipe the tear trickling down her cheek. “Because I haven’t been honest with him or anyone since I got here. Everything has been a lie.”
Tracee frowned. “What do you mean?”
Sosie hesitated, unsure whether to go on. There was no going back now, though. She’d already let the reindeer take off with the sled. She took a deep breath. “For one thing, I’m not from Canada. I’m an elf.”
Silence met her words as both women stared at her. Sosie felt her stomach knot. They didn’t believe her. Or they believed her and were so horrified they were speechless. She didn’t know which scenario was worse. She was torn between trying to come up with something to say and running out of the apartment altogether when Linda spoke.
“You’re not from Canada? I was so sure you were. I’m bummed.”
“The hell with Canada, Linda.” Tracee gave her friend an impatient look. “Didn’t you hear what she said?”
“I heard her. She’s an elf.” Linda shrugged. “So that means she’s from Finland or New Foundland or somewhere like that.”
The red-haired girl shook her head. “Damn, girlfriend, you can be thick as a brick sometimes. She’s an elf—from the North Pole.”
Sosie watched as what Tracee said suddenly dawned on Linda. She dreaded the next words out of the other woman’s mouth.
“Oh. That kind of elf.” The dark-haired girl grinned. “Cool! I never knew you guys were real. Does that mean Santa is real, too?”
Sosie blinked. Whatever she’d expected Linda to say, it wasn’t that. Sosie turned to Tracee. The redhead didn’t look freaked out by learning Sosie was an elf any more than Linda had. If anything, she looked curious.
“Well, is he?” Tracee asked when Sosie didn’t answer.
“Yes, Santa is real.”
Tracee sat back in her chair. “I knew there was something different about you the moment I saw your pointy, little ears when Derek was kissing you under the mistletoe.”
Sosie gasped, instinctively reaching up with both hands to make sure her hair was still covering her ears.
Linda squealed. “You have pointy ears? Let me see.”
Sosie started to shake her head, but one look at Linda’s face told her the other woman wasn’t going to let it go until Sosie showed them her ears. Sosie took a deep breath and pulled her hair back to reveal them.
Linda’s eyes went wide. “Oh my God, those are so cool!”
Sosie stared at her incredulously. “You’re not freaked out?”
“No. Why would I be? They’re just pointed ears. It’s not as if you’re an alien from another planet or anything.” She shot Tracee a venomous glare. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me Sosie has elf ears.”
“Not my ears, not my secret,” the redhead said. “How did an elf end up in New York City from the North Pole anyway? That is where you live, right?”
Sosie nodded. She told them everything—what her life had been like in the North Pole and how unhappy she’d been, her planned transfer to the South Pole, the sled breaking down, and finally, meeting Derek. She knew she shouldn’t dump all of it on two women she barely knew, but it felt so good to finally be able to let it out. By the time she finished, both Tracee and Linda were wiping tears from their cheeks.
Linda sighed. “That is so romantic. You came all this way looking for love and stumbled right into Derek. It’s like a fairy tale. Or an elf tale, I suppose.”
Sosie gave her a wan smile. “If only I could tell him all of it.”
“Why can’t you?” Linda asked.
“I’m afraid of what he’ll say.”
“Derek’s already half in love with you, Sosie,” Tracee said. “Finding out you’re an elf isn’t going to change how he feels about you.”
Sosie wasn’t so sure. He might not care she was an elf, but she’d still lied to him about who she was. What if he couldn’t forgive her?
“Tracee’s right.” Linda sipped her diet soda. “You said Derek’s going to take some time off, right? You can tell him then. By the way, why does he have to wait to see how things go tonight to take some time off? What’s going down tonight?”
“I’m not sure,” Sosie admitted. “He tried to explain it to me, but it didn’t make much sense. He and the other detectives are going to bust some mob boss named Sammy Saldino. He said arresting Saldino will make his career, but to be honest, I’m worried. Even with SWAT and all their automatic weapons, it sounds dangerous.”
“It is dangerous,” Linda said.
On the other side of the table, Tracee gave her friend a warning look. Linda mumbled something under her breath, her face coloring.
Tracee waved a hand in the dark-haired woman’s direction. “Don’t mind Linda. She’s a drama queen sometimes. Derek will be fine.”
Sosie looked from one woman to the other, her stomach tying itself into a knot at the worried l
ook on their faces. “What aren’t you telling me?”
“Nothing,” Tracee said. “Really.”
“You’re lying,” Sosie said. “Derek is going to be in danger tonight, isn’t he?”
Tracee was silent for so long Sosie thought the other woman wasn’t going to answer. She was about to prompt her again when Linda finally spoke.
“She needs to know, Tracee.”
“Know what?” Sosie demanded.
“That being a cop is dangerous,” Linda answered when Tracee didn’t say anything.
“It is?” Sosie felt her mouth go dry. “I mean, I know Derek carries a gun, but I thought everyone did. I didn’t know someone might try to hurt him.”
Tracee shared another look with Linda, then reached out and covered Sosie’s hand with hers. “Derek will be fine, honey. He’s a good cop and he’s a smart one. He’ll be safe.”
Sosie didn’t say anything. She couldn’t speak. She couldn’t even seem to breathe. Everyone she’d met had been so nice to her since coming here that she’d thought all the things she’d heard about rage and violence among the BPs were stories made up by Elf Central so the elves would be afraid to leave the safety of the North Pole. The thought that Derek might actually get hurt tonight—or worse—just about scared her to death.
Dear Santa, how the fig was she ever going to keep it together until he walked into the apartment and she knew for sure he was safe?
* * * *
Derek checked his watch in the dim glow of the streetlight. Almost eight. Saldino and his men should be at the warehouse soon.
It’d already been a long-ass day. First, there’d been the endless preoperational mission briefings between all the main players in the raid, followed by some one-on-one meetings with key department and city officials. After that, he and the rest of the task force, along with the support personnel, had moved into position around Saldino’s West Street dock warehouse. In addition to SWAT teams for entry, uniformed officers were on hand for perimeter control and plainclothes detectives from other divisions were there to act as backup and apprehend anyone who made it out of the warehouse. A lot of the top brass and the assistant DA were also there.
It’d taken the better part of the day to get everyone in position, but by sundown everything was ready. All they were waiting for was Saldino to make his move. Then Derek could give the signal. Though the captain and precinct commanders were on the scene, they were only there as observers. This was Derek’s case, which meant he was going to be the one who pulled the proverbial trigger. And took the blame if things went wrong. That meant nothing could go wrong. If it did, he was going to be back in uniform on foot patrol. If he was lucky.
Derek looked at his watch again. Eight on the nose. He and the rest of the organized crime task force had set up in a warehouse a few blocks down from Saldino’s place. From there, they could maintain a visual on the front of the huge building and see when Saldino arrived. Assuming he arrived by way of the main road along the docks. Not that it mattered which entrance the mob boss used. Derek had made sure every square inch of the building was covered by surveillance.
Five minutes past the hour, a line of sedans approached the warehouse. Derek’s pulse kicked up a notch. Even though the information had been good, part of him had been worried the mob boss wouldn’t show. But that was Saldino and his crew, no doubt about it. The man liked to travel in style.
Derek had hoped the vehicles would stop in front of the warehouse, so they could get video of Saldino’s men dragging the drug dealer inside, but the vehicles didn’t slow down. The big doors of the warehouse rolled up and all six sedans drove inside, then the doors came back down. A moment later, two men dressed in suits came out of the main entrance and took their posts on either side of it.
Shit.
Not only wouldn’t they have any video footage of them dragging their hostage inside, but the two guards at the door would make the approach to the warehouse more difficult.
Derek glanced over at the men sitting at a table in the back of the room with headphones glued to their ears. “Any audio coming out of there yet?”
Both men shook their heads.
“Negative,” one of them said. “There’s some kind of interference scrambling the signals. They might have jammers installed in there.”
Shit.
The captain looked at him. “It’s your call. Derek. Without video or audio, we’re going in there blind.”
Maybe, but they couldn’t wait until they heard for a gunshot to go in and bust Saldino. Not only would that get the drug dealer killed, but they’d have no way to prove it wasn’t self-defense on Saldino’s part. That’s if one of Saldino’s guys didn’t throw himself on the sword and take the blame. No, they had to catch the mob boss red-handed, and they had to move quickly. Knowing Saldino, the man would savor the moment for a while before he pulled the trigger, but Derek couldn’t depend on that. If Saldino popped the drug dealer before they got inside, they were screwed.
“We go in now, but not like we originally planned,” Derek said. “If we don’t get those two guards at the door out of the way, we’ll never be able to surprise Saldino, so Aaron and I will go in first. Everyone else waits for my signal.”
The captain gave him a nod. “Watch yourselves out there.”
Derek took off the blue jacket with the word “POLICE” printed on the back in big block letters and shoved his gun in the back of his jeans, then shrugged into his leather jacket, zipping it up to hide the bulletproof vest he wore. Once Aaron had done the same, they headed down the street to Saldino’s warehouse. The two men standing guard at the door exchanged looks as he and Aaron approached.
“What are you doing here?” one of the men demanded. “Mr. Saldino gave everyone the day off.”
“We’re here for our overtime checks,” Derek said. “We were told to pick them up tonight.”
The two guards looked at each other again. “Well, whoever told you that made a mistake. You’ll have to come back tomorrow.”
Derek glanced at Aaron, giving him a slight nod before turning back to the two men at the door. He thanked them, then made as if to turn away, but instead he drew his gun and leveled it at one of the men while Aaron did the same to the other.
“Not a word,” Derek said softly.
The two men eyed them, clearly debating whether they should go for their own weapons, but must have changed their minds when Derek and Aaron were surrounded by a dozen other cops a few moments later.
As two uniformed officers cuffed the guards and led them away, one of the commo techs moved in to attach an audio probe to the wall beside the door. While he did that, Derek checked on his radio to make sure the other entry teams were in place at the back and side entrances to the warehouse. He’d even stationed an undercover team in a boat off the pier in case Saldino tried to escape that way.
“Anything?” he asked the commo tech.
The man shook his head. “Nothing. There’s definitely something interfering with our equipment.”
“Damn.” Derek lifted his radio, thumbing the button on the side. “Anyone got an eyeball on what’s going on in there?”
Each team had the same reply—negative.
Derek swore under his breath. They couldn’t wait any longer. They had to make their move—now.
He lifted the radio again to give the order when the sound of gunshots echoed in the warehouse.
Shit.
“Go, go!” Derek shouted.
At his order, the SWAT team with him immediately mobilized, the entry officer in the front busting open the door with a battering ram. Derek and his fellow cops surged forward, weapons ready. The other teams burst into the warehouse from three different directions, SWAT leading the way in black ski masks, waving automatic weapons and barking orders.
Derek expected to find the drug dealer lying dead on the floor, or at least wounded and begging for his life, Saldino using him for target practice while his men watched. Instead there were twenty k
ids sitting frozen in their chairs staring at him and the rest of the cops wide-eyed. Some of them were holding the remnants of popped balloons in their hands. Others were frozen in the act of shoving birthday cake into their mouth.
In the stunned silence, one of the kids started crying, then another and another until the whole warehouse was full of bawling rug rats and their screaming mothers.
Several men stood off to the side, Sammy Saldino among them, an angry but satisfied expression on his face.
Shit.
They’d been completely set up. And the bastard Saldino had used a kid’s birthday party to do it, not giving a damn any of them could have been shot. Or maybe the mob boss had been hoping one of them would be so he’d have something else to use as leverage against the NYPD.
“Lower your weapons!” Derek shouted to the cops who were still aiming their weapons at the group. “Lower them now, dammit!”
Saldino smirked as they followed the order. “Looks as if you’ve given me more ammunition for my harassment lawsuit, Detective.”
Derek clenched his jaw. Unzipping his jacket, he holstered his gun. That was when he noticed the video cameras sitting on the table. Oh, hell. The kids’ mothers must have been recording the party, which probably meant they had captured everything on tape. Could this fiasco get any worse?
He found out the answer to that question a moment later when the captain walked in with the brass and the assistant district attorney. The ADA threw him a furious glare, then hurried forward to apologize profusely to Saldino. The glower the ADA gave him didn’t compare to the looks his boss and other senior officers sent his way. He was so fucking screwed.
Figuring their presence in the warehouse would only make things tenser than they already were, Derek got SWAT and the rest of the cops out of the building. Once he did, he made sure to tell all the support teams on the perimeter to stand down as well. After that, he thanked the SWAT team leader and commo techs and got them the hell out of there before the press showed up. That left him standing with Aaron, Tony and the rest of the organized crime task force.