Casey smiled and chuckled, hefting her bag onto a clear spot on the couch. “I’m a reporter and I’ve slipped in and out of situations more dangerous and dire than this one. It’s one of my superpowers. Don’t be angry at your men. I’m sure they did their best but you can’t stop what you don’t see.”
Marisa opened her mouth to speak but then must have thought better of it. Instead, she crossed her arms over her chest and tapped her foot impatiently. “I really don’t have time for this. We need to get Josie back to Tampa before rush hour. She’ll be held there overnight and tomorrow morning be transported back to Washington D.C. If she’s innocent, Evan, you can hire her an attorney. My job is to return her for questioning. Whether she’s guilty or not isn’t my call and frankly, it isn’t yours either. You’ve forgotten everything you learned on the job.”
“Thank God,” Dare muttered and Josie had to stifle the urge to fly down the stairs and give him a hug. “What you’re talking about is shutting off his brain and not thinking. That sounds like a hell of a way to do your job. Is it working for you?”
Apparently Marisa didn’t like being put on the spot or made fun of. She sputtered a few times as she tried to answer and eventually waved him off. “You don’t know anything about me or this job. You’re a small town sheriff in some backwater, piece of shit town that no one cares about. This is the big leagues, boys. Try to keep up.”
Evan took a step forward, invading Marisa’s personal space and causing the woman’s face to turn white with fear when she caught a glimpse of his expression. “Do not talk to my friends that way. These are some of the best lawmen in the country and you will be respectful.”
Swallowing hard, Marisa shrugged and took a step back. “Fine. Now send Josie down here so we can get on the road. I’m losing patience here.”
Evan shook his head. “I won’t let you take her. I told you. You’re not the only ones that want her, Marisa. This could get very ugly very fast if you’re not cautious.”
“Are you threatening me?”
“No, just stating a fact. The people that want her aren’t playing a game. They killed Amy and who knows how many others. They won’t hesitate to do it again as they have a hell of a lot to lose.”
Casey, who had been watching the play by play closely, took that opportunity to speak up. “I think this is my cue to ask that you start from the beginning and tell that story, Mr. Davis. And I’d like to see that recording too. If I think you have something, I’ll send it up to my paper’s office so they can begin authentication of it. We have to make sure that you haven’t altered it in any way.”
“It’s as real as it gets,” Evan assured her. “But yes, let’s all sit down and I’ll tell you what I know.”
Marisa exhaled noisily. “I suppose you think that once I hear this I’m going to be all sympathetic? She’s a killer, Evan. You can’t hide her forever.” She looked up the stairs and Josie crouched back behind the wall to hide herself, her pulse racing and sweat pooling at the back of her neck. “Is she up there?”
Yes, I’m up here and I’m not planning to come down, either.
“Give me fifteen minutes. That’s all I’m asking. As a friend.”
Tears pooled in Josie’s eyes as she listened to the plea in Evan’s voice. He shouldn’t be having to do this at all.
“Fine. Fifteen minutes. This better dazzle me.”
Only her entire future balanced on the next quarter hour.
No pressure at all.
* * * *
Evan patiently – or as patiently as he could – explained Josie’s story, answered their questions, and then popped the thumb drive into the laptop so they could watch the recording. Both women had a nauseous expression when the video completed and that buoyed Evan’s mood. Perhaps he had convinced Marisa that Josie needed protection from Lydell.
Casey held out her hand. “I’d like to transfer that file to my people in the newsroom so they can begin the authentication. We have a lot of work and research ahead of us to put this story together. It could take a few days.”
Heart heavy with disappointment, he handed her the drive. He’d hope it would be on the evening news tonight. “The sooner it’s made public the sooner Josie’s life won’t be in danger. Can’t you release it now?”
Casey shook her head as she reached into her messenger bag, pulling out her own laptop. “We have to look it over first. I wouldn’t be doing my job very well if I put this out there and then found out you had manipulated it in some way.” She held up her hand when Evan huffed in anger. “Not that I’m saying you have. I do believe you but I have to do my due diligence. My bosses aren’t going to just let me throw this out there.”
“I should have just leaked it,” Evan groaned. “I thought it would be better to have the press do it but now I think I should have just posted it online and let it go viral.”
“That’s one way,” Casey agreed. “But this way we can put the recording in context.”
Seth’s brows shot up. “What other context is there? Lydell is slime.”
Casey sighed and handed the thumb drive back to Evan after sending the file. “People aren’t shocked anymore when politicians are jerks. They have to be shown that they’re super jerks and that it affects them. If my leads pan out, I can show that not only is Lydell a man who assaults women but he’s also for sale to the highest bidder. But I don’t think you care as much about discrediting him as clearing your girlfriend. This should give him a strong motive for killing Amy Dalton.”
“That’s all I want. Josie didn’t do this. As for his political aspirations, that will sort itself out.”
Marisa reached for the drive but Evan snatched his hand back. “Get a warrant. Until then, it’s mine.”
“Don’t you have copies?” she asked, her face scrunched up and her cheeks red. She wasn’t happy with him at the moment but Evan didn’t care much. “I can’t help you if you don’t help me.”
Evan took a deep breath and appraised his former partner from head to toe and then back up again. He’d known her, worked with her, and even slept with her. She was all about the job and ate ambition for breakfast. Josie just might be her ticket up the ranks. Marisa would get a ton of attention for bringing in a woman who could possibly expose a bigwig like Lydell. There was murder and sex too. The press would eat this up and Marisa would be in the middle of all of it.
The thought of the relationship they’d once shared left a nasty taste in his mouth. He could truthfully say he didn’t have a clue what he’d been thinking back then.
“Are you going to help me?” Evan finally asked Marisa. “Are you going to let me protect Josie? She didn’t do this. She’s innocent.”
The shuttered look in his former partner and friend’s eyes told him everything without her saying a word.
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck you.
“You know I can’t. What would I tell those men out there?”
“That she’s not here,” Evan retorted. “You questioned me and she wasn’t here. Go back to Tampa and let Casey do her job. In a couple of days, things will look completely different.”
“But she is here, isn’t she?” Marisa challenged. “She’s here and I can’t leave without her. She has to be taken into custody, Evan, and right now you are obstructing justice. I can run you and your friends in as well. You need to step aside and let me do my job. I can keep her safe until you can get her free. There’s no place safer for her than with us.”
Evan didn’t believe that for a minute. He knew for a fact that government agencies were rife with leaks. He couldn’t take that chance with Josie’s life.
Dammit, he loved her.
“I think she’s safer here.” Evan leaned forward trying to get Marisa to really listen to him. “She’s not a danger to anyone. She’s not going to go on a killing or robbing spree and knock over a half dozen liquor stores. She’s a scared woman who doesn’t want to die. Can you understand that? She’s not going anywhere. You can keep tabs on her right here. With
me.”
For a split second, he thought he’d managed to get through to Marisa but then his heart plunged to his feet when she shook her head. “No, Evan. We do this by the book. She comes with me.”
He wouldn’t – couldn’t – allow Marisa to take Josie. He stood and backed toward the staircase as he drew his weapon. He hadn’t expected it but Reed, Seth, and Dare did the same until they’d created a very large and strong human wall in front of the stairs to the second floor.
“If you take her, you take me. Simple as that.”
The reporter was watching this entire situation play out with great interest. He was sure she was already formulating her headline.
Marisa stood, her entire body tensed and her lips in a flat line. “Stand down, Evan. I can bring in more firepower than you can imagine. Do you want to end up dead? You won’t be any help to her in a body bag. Do you want to be responsible for your friends’ deaths as well? They’ve got wives and kids to think about. Do you want to be responsible for that? I’ll take good care of her if they actually arrest her after they question her. I’ll make sure she eats okay and that she’s not near any of the other prisoners. You can trust me with her. You trusted me with your life but you won’t trust me with hers?”
Evan was gritting his teeth so tightly he thought his jaw might snap. He could barely breathe as his chest squeezed painfully at the mere thought of Josie out of his sight.
No, that couldn’t happen.
“I trusted you with my life…but hers? Fuck, her life is way more important than mine. She stays here.”
“You’re not thinking clearly. Best case scenario is that you and your friends end up doing some time for this little stunt. The decision is simple.”
She had no idea. None at all.
“My decision hasn’t changed. You have to go through me.”
“Then I will.”
Marisa turned on her heel but then there was a noise from the top of the stairs. Evan didn’t dare turn around but he had a terrible feeling as to what or whom it was.
No. No, Josie. Don’t do this. Baby, don’t.
“Wait. Actually, this is my decision. And I’m deciding to turn myself in.”
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Josie had never been in handcuffs before and it felt strange to not be able to move her arms. Marisa hadn’t placed them all that tightly on Josie’s wrists but the cold metal against her skin was a constant reminder that she was headed to jail.
For a crime she didn’t commit.
Evan’s face was red and he didn’t bother to hide his anger and frustration with her decision to turn herself in. What he didn’t seem to comprehend was that as much as he cared for her and wanted to keep her safe, she cared just as much. She didn’t want anything to happen to him or his friends. She didn’t want them to go to jail or get in some crazy shootout with the cops. It wasn’t worth their freedom. She’d have to fight this head on. Hopefully one day he would understand.
Marisa stood off to the side letting them say goodbye.
He gently grabbed Josie’s arms and pulled her close, pressing a kiss onto her lips. A tight pain began in her chest and tears to well in her eyes. She was terrified of going but she couldn’t allow him to suffer because of her. “You don’t have to do this. Let me talk to Marisa some more.”
They both knew it was a wasted effort. The marshal wasn’t going to suddenly change her mind and walk away. She had way too much to lose.
Her vision glazed with tears, Josie swallowed the lump that had taken residence in her throat. Even worse than going to jail was leaving this man. How she ever thought she’d leave, she had no idea.
“I have to go and we both know it,” she said quietly, not wanting Marisa to overhear. Josie had a feeling privacy had just become a thing of the past and she wanted to hold onto at least a shred of it for one more minute if she could. “I can’t let you get hurt or arrested. Your friends either. She said she’d make sure I’m okay and I think we have to believe her. I’ll be all right.”
His own eyes were bright with tears and he crushed her body against his, lips near her ear. “I love you, honey. Stay strong. I’ll get you out of there as soon as I can.”
It was the absolute worst thing he could have said and yet it was amazingly wonderful too. She’d finally found a man she could love and trust with her whole heart and they were being torn apart by terrible circumstance.
“I love you too,” she whispered, her heart shattering into a million pieces in her chest. This was so incredibly unfair. “I love you and we’re both going to be okay. I’ll be home before you know it.”
Home. She hadn’t had a real one in a long time but it was definitely here with Evan. Or rather wherever he was. She’d follow him to the ends of the earth and back just to be with him. All she wanted was the opportunity.
“I know some good lawyers, honey. Dare’s already on the phone to one right now. With any luck he’ll meet you in Tampa, plus we’ll be right behind you. I may not be with you every step of the way but know that I’m close by.”
Tears slid down her cheeks and he swiped them away with his thumbs. “Just knowing that you won’t give up helps.”
“I won’t give up. Ever.”
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a handkerchief, telling her to blow. Smoothing her hair behind her ear, he kissed her a few more times before finally stepping back.
It was time.
A few more words were spoken but Josie barely heard or acknowledged them. Her fate had suddenly become more real than she’d ever bargained for. People thought she was a murderer and they wanted her to answer to those charges. She was going to be questioned at the very least and possibly arrested. She might go to jail and then maybe prison. All she had done was try to help a friend and then everything had gone so very wrong. How had she come to be here?
Marisa took Josie by the arm and led her out of the house and down the front porch steps to the vehicle. It was all Josie could do not to wrench away and run as far and fast as she could. She wanted to scream at the top of her lungs that she was a good person and hadn’t done anything wrong. Words clogged in her sore and swollen throat along with a maelstrom of emotions from sadness to fury to flat-out terror. She wasn’t anyone special. Why would anyone believe her?
Josie kept her head down, not wanting to look any of the officers in the eye. She didn’t want to see the scorn or pity there. They’d probably seen and heard it all. One more person crying out their innocence meant nothing to them anymore.
Somehow Evan had insinuated himself on her other side. She doubted anyone else would have been allowed but Marisa must have been feeling generous today. “We’re right behind you, honey. Don’t answer any questions until your attorney gets there.”
Nodding wordlessly, Josie allowed herself to be placed in the back of the SUV while Marisa climbed into the driver’s seat. She and Evan spoke for a moment but Josie couldn’t hear what they were saying as much as she tried. Was Evan extracting one more promise to take care of Josie? His fingers trailed over the closed window and he gave her an encouraging smile, or what passed as one. Reed, Seth, and Dare all stood in a row behind him, their arms crossed over their chests and extremely pissed off expressions on their faces. At least after she was gone, they’d be there for Evan. He was going to need someone too.
The motorcade pulled away from the house and glided soundlessly down the driveway and onto the road. There was nothing but silence in the vehicle until they hit the interstate. It was at that point Marisa decided to speak.
“You did a good thing back there. I didn’t want to have to take Evan and his friends in but I would have done it.”
Of course you would have. You’re a total bitch.
Josie didn’t know if Marisa expected a reply but talking kept her mind off where this car was headed.
“I would never let any harm come to Evan,” Josie finally answered.
“Because you love him.”
It wasn’t phrased as
a question.
It also wasn’t any of Marisa’s business. Josie had only admitted it to Evan moments ago. She wasn’t about to start spilling girlish secrets with the woman who had a warrant to bring Josie in for questioning as a person of interest in a murder case. She was dumb but she wasn’t stupid.
“You do, don’t you?” Marisa prompted when Josie didn’t answer.
“I think I did what any decent human being would do,” Josie countered instead. “I don’t think anyone could watch someone get hurt or go to jail just to protect them.”
“And you’re innocent, after all.”
The way the woman drawled through the syllables spoke volumes as to her opinion on Josie’s guilt.
“I am.” Josie spoke firmly despite the fact she wouldn’t be believed. “Amy was a good friend and I loved her like a sister. I miss her every day. I want to see whomever did this brought to justice probably more than you do.”
“I’m sure.”
They didn’t speak for several minutes and Josie watched out the window as the scenery whipped by. It wouldn’t take long to get to Tampa.
“When we get there you’ll be taken to a conference room and questioned. I assume you’ll invoke your right to remain silent until an attorney arrives?”
Just like on television, Josie had been advised of her rights when she’d been handcuffed. She wasn’t officially arrested per se according to Marisa. She was wanted for questioning and they could hold her for twenty-four hours without charging her with anything.
“I will,” Josie agreed. “Evan is working on that.”
“I’m going to do Evan a favor and not process you in any way. You can hang out in the interrogation room until the District Attorney decides what he wants to do with you. I just wanted you to know that I’m doing this for Evan as a friend.”
It hadn’t crossed Josie’s mind that it would be done for her. “He’ll be grateful. I’ll let him know that you did it for him.”
“You won’t have to tell him. He’ll know. He knows procedures backwards and forwards. He was a great marshal and he should come back.”
Justice Reborn (Cowboy Justice Association Book 8) Page 18