Kyle (Hope City Book 4)

by Maryann Jordan

  Thomas began to speak again, but a sharp glare from Robert caused him to snap his mouth closed, his fingers clutching the arms of the chair.

  Continuing, Kyle said, “We were suspicious of the van robbery. While I wouldn’t call it easy, there were too many variables that led to our concerns. The van had to get to the pharmacy earlier than normal, and yet the truck was already there waiting for them, indicating the thieves knew not only the regular schedule but the change in schedule. The driver who was struck, Joe Parson, had been taken out of sight and yet Charlie distinctly heard him talking, indicating Joe had a conversation with the driver in a tone that was not upset or concerned. The truck involved in the theft had been reported stolen from a local laundry business but was owned by a larger cleaning service. It was found, and while the thieves assumed the use of gloves on the plastic-wrapped cardboard boxes would suffice, trace evidence of the pharmaceuticals was discovered. The truck was owned by Hope City Linen and Uniform Service, which in turn is owned by Artog Shipping.”

  At this, he noted Robert’s eyes widened. “I see you recognize that name. It has ties to both Kilton Pharmaceuticals as well as Congressman Dell.”

  Thomas scoffed. “This is ridiculous! This is nothing more than a convoluted fabrication that exposes the Hope City Police Department’s inability to find stolen drugs. Hope City has a drug problem and the police are ineffectual in combating it, so they're coming after us with nothing but ridiculous political innuendo.”

  Kyle turned and looked toward Thomas, lifting his brow in skepticism. His lips curved ever so slightly and he continued without hesitation. “What was suspected from the beginning was that the robbery was either planned by or planned with someone from inside Kilton Pharmaceuticals. As it turns out, we now know how it was done and have arrested most of the players.”

  Alex’s phone vibrated aloud, and after he checked the text, he looked toward Kyle and nodded.

  “Detective Freeman has just been informed that Porter Myles has been taken into custody, and we already have Joseph Parson. At the moment, those are the only two employees of Kilton Pharmaceuticals that we have arrested. Joe knew that the robbery was going to occur. When the accident kept them from keeping to their original schedule, he had to inform someone, ensuring that thieves on the other end would know about the change. Officially, he called Tammy Rutgers, which would be the correct protocol. She, in turn, told Bob Trogdon, and that should have been the end of it. In checking Joseph’s phone logs, we found that he also sent a separate message to Porter Myles, who responded that he’d take care of it. We know that Porter then contacted Roger Solten, who works at the Linen Service. He was the driver of the truck and made the change necessary to be at the pharmacy at the new time.”

  Thomas shifted slightly in his seat, and Kyle threw another glance toward him. “Roger took the drugs and delivered them to the next level, getting them close to the streets. He used Joseph’s stepbrother, Jeremiah Dempsy, who would then deliver the drugs to various dealers. Roger kept a tight accounting on the dealers, and he had sufficient manpower to back up any threats he needed to make. The money started pouring in to him after the dealers took their cut. Then Roger began paying the person in charge of the entire operation after he took his percentage. Even with all that, the person at the top is making over a million dollars on this stolen shipment alone. And, of course, that doesn’t include other stolen shipments around the world that occur when Kilton Pharmaceuticals uses Artog Shipping.”

  “Detective, please tell me that you’ve identified who was at the top so that we can plug this hole,” Robert Kilton said, his blue eyes blazing and his voice hard.

  “Yes, Sir, we have.”

  Alex stepped forward, flanking Thomas’ chair. “Thomas Kilton, you need to accompany us down to the station, where you will be charged with the theft of the Kilton Pharmaceuticals drugs. I will also let you know that the FBI will be meeting us there as they are looking into the multi-national drug ring organization as well as racketeering considering money from your private account has been paying for the silence of Beth Washington and Douglas Tiller. Congressman Dell is already being questioned as to the discrepancies in the campaign finances. We’re in the process of obtaining a search warrant for your computers, both here and at home, but the FBI is stepping in and taking over this case. It’s our understanding that they will be freezing your accounts, including your offshore accounts and properties.”

  “Offshore accounts?” Robert asked, his palms slamming down on top of Thomas’ desk as he pushed himself to stand, his gaze pinned on his son. “You’ve been stealing from the company? Our family?”

  “This is preposterous! You’ve got nothing on me because I had nothing to do with any of this!” Thomas cried, jumping to his feet.

  “We can do this easy where you walk out, or we escort you out in handcuffs in front of the other people in this building. You make the call,” Kyle ordered, his voice low.

  “Go with them, Thomas,” Robert said. He walked around the desk, and Kyle noticed the older man’s hands shook ever so slightly. “I’ll call our attorney but, Son, I’ll let you know right now… if you’re guilty of what these detectives say you are, you’ll get no help from me.”

  Alex placed his hand on Thomas’ shoulder only to have the indignant Vice President shake himself loose. “I’ll walk out on my own.” Turning toward Kyle, he sneered, “You’ll regret this.”

  Kyle stalked over, stopping only when the toes of his boots touched Thomas’. The men were almost equal in height, but Kyle shoved his face forward, forcing Thomas to lean back. “You’re in enough shit, but if I find out you had anything to do with calling a hit on Kimberly Hogan and the subsequent shooting of Bob Trogdon… I’ll bury you.”

  Robert gasped, but Kyle was done talking. Alex opened the door and motioned for two HC police officers to step into the office. After Alex placed Thomas under arrest and read him his rights, he had the officers escort him out.

  A commotion was at the door and a woman rushed inside, her eyes wide. Kyle recognized Sidney Kilton from her pictures, but the harried expression on her face was not like the professional photographs.

  “Dad! What’s happening?” She hurried forward, placing her hands on her father’s arms, pulling him close.

  “It… it appears that your brother has made some… unwise decisions…” Robert’s voice trailed off, his breath seeming to leave him.

  Sydney, still holding on to her father, turned toward Kyle. “Can you tell me?”

  “Ms. Kilton, at this time I can tell you that your brother is under investigation by not only the Hope City Police Department but the FBI for stealing pharmaceuticals from the company and arranging to have them sold on the black market. He is also being investigated for funneling money into the campaign finances of Congressman Dell, purportedly to ascertain favorable legislation for the pharmaceutical industry.”

  He had no idea what her response would be, but her face hardened like stone and she stiffened her spine, pulling herself to her full height. “That snake!” Jerking her head around, her face softened as she stared at her father. “I had suspicions about some of the financial decisions he was making, but I had no idea he’d sunk so low!”

  Robert appeared as though he had aged just in the time that Kyle had been in the office. Turning to leave, Kyle was halted when Robert asked, “Detective, what did you mean by a hit on Kimberly and Bob Trogdon?”

  Turning fully to the pair staring at him wide-eyed, he said, “Kimberly Hogan is an employee in your marketing department who had been seen talking to the driver that had been arrested. Bob Trogdon works in your warehouse and happens to be Kimberly’s neighbor. Someone broke into Bob’s house two nights ago and shot him as he slept, but evidence leads us to believe they thought they were in Kimberly’s house—”

  The gasps were audible coming from Robert and Sidney, but Kyle continued. “I’ll add that Kimberly is my girlfriend. So, even though I have to be professional… this is p
ersonal.”

  29

  Marcus leaned back in his seat and stretched his arms above his head, drawing Kimberly’s attention from the editing she’d been working on for most of the morning. Glancing around, she saw the room was almost empty. John had finally come in but, with barely a nod to anyone, had gone into his office and his door remained closed.

  “Oh, my goodness, I didn’t realize everyone had gone to lunch.”

  “You hungry?” Marcus asked.

  “Yeah, I am.”

  “Let’s hit one of the food trucks downstairs.” Marcus stood and turned, suddenly taking a step closer to the window, looking down. “Whoa!”

  “What is it?” Her attention snagged, she hurried to the window and stood next to him, peering downward.

  Suddenly, John’s door opened, and he stepped out. He walked over to the window also, standing on the other side of her. “What’s going on?”

  As the three looked down toward the sidewalk, she saw two police officers and two of the Kilton Pharmaceuticals security guards escorting a man between them. “That looks like Porter Myles.”

  Marcus turned toward her, his brow furrowed. Answering his unasked question, she said, “He’s over at the warehouse. I talked to him a couple of weeks ago.”

  “I wonder what he did.”

  She lifted her shoulders in a shrug but remained quiet. Suddenly, more movement on the sidewalk caught her attention and a gasp slipped out.

  Marcus and John leaned forward also, all watching as Thomas Kilton was escorted by the police toward the parking lot. Both men turned toward her, and she glanced up between them, shrugging again.

  Marcus continued to look at her, tilting his head to the side. “I get the feeling you know a lot more than you let on. You've been interviewing these people.”

  “With the drug thefts, it’s an ongoing investigation. The police can’t say much.”

  “Come on, let’s get a bite. John, you want to join us? We’re going to hit one of the food trucks.”

  A look of indecision passed over John's face before he nodded. The three left the office, taking the stairs and exiting the building on the side. Other employees were gathered in small groups, murmuring as everyone watched the police escort Porter and Thomas away.

  Skirting around some of the others, the trio headed toward the closest food truck. “This is crazy,” Marcus said. “Drugs being stolen, people in high positions being arrested, hell, even Bob getting shot.”

  Blinking in surprise, Kimberly jerked her head around and looked up at Marcus. Bob getting shot? But how…?

  Hearing a growl on the other side, she jerked her head around and looked at John. His eyes were pinned on Marcus, his jaw hardened, and his mouth pinched into a tight line.

  Marcus’ gaze jumped between John and hers. “Shit!” His hand shot out, grabbing her upper arm, clamping tight. He pushed his way between a small group of people, dragging her along with him just as John shouted for them to stop, grabbing her as well

  Kyle and Alex stepped out of the headquarters building, having left Robert Kilton and his daughter to deal with the legal fallout for Kilton Pharmaceuticals. Pulling out his phone, he was shooting a text to Kimberly when a shout caught his attention.

  A man was shouting for someone to ‘stop’ while grabbing onto a woman who was being dragged by another man. Recognizing Kimberly as the woman now trapped between two angry men, all thoughts left his mind about the ongoing interviews and investigation, focusing entirely on getting to her.

  People scattered as he and Alex pounded down the sidewalk toward Kimberly and the two men still fighting over her. Alex shouted their identification as police and one man dropped his hold of her as he turned toward them.

  With his hands in the air, the man cried, “It’s Marcus! He shot Bob!

  With no one pulling in the opposite direction, Kimberly was now pulled along by Marcus, and they were almost able to disappear around the corner of the building. Kimberly’s toe caught on an uneven seam in the sidewalk, and she fell toward the ground, her arm jerking out of Marcus’ grip. She landed face down, smacking the sidewalk with her palms. Kyle reached her as Alex yelled, “Police!” and made a flying leap, tackling Marcus.

  Kyle dropped to his knees next to her and scooped her up into his arms. She kept repeating, “I’m okay, I’m okay, I’m okay.” He shifted around and plopped his butt onto the sidewalk, pulling her into his lap.

  The first man rushed up and squatted next to them. “Kimberly, are you hurt?”

  “I’m okay, John.” Looking toward Kyle, she said, “This is my boss, John Bennett.”

  Even as she was offering assurances, Kyle noted her palms, knees, and cheek were scraped and bloody.

  “I had no idea! But as we were walking out, Marcus said something about Bob being shot. I knew nobody should know that!”

  “I thought the same thing,” John said.

  Standing, Kyle helped her to her feet. Turning his attention toward John, he asked “How did you know something happened to Bob?”

  Glancing around, John blushed slightly. “Because we’re a couple. He’s at my place to recuperate.”

  “Oh, I had no idea,” she said, her heart still pounding.

  “We felt it best to keep it quiet. Work romances can be hard under the best of circumstances.”

  By now, Alex had handcuffs on Marcus, and he was being loaded into another police cruiser. He glanced down at her knees. “First, let’s get you checked out.”

  “It’s just a few scra—”

  He hushed her words with a light kiss, mumbling, “Do it for me, babe.”

  Grateful she acquiesced, he led her to the ambulance where they cleaned and treated her abrasions while he hovered, not wanting to let her out of his sight. Wrapping her in his arms, he whispered, “Hate like hell to do this, babe, but I need to get to the station, and you’re coming with me.”

  Her eyes were warm as they stared at him. “Then let’s go. The sooner we get this behind us, the sooner we can go home.”

  Looking toward John, she asked, “Will you stay with Bob?”

  “Absolutely. Go do what you need to do, and I’ll tell Bob you’ll talk to him later.”

  Tucking her in close to his side, he bent and kissed her lightly. “Can’t wait to get home, babe.”

  The station was busy. Thomas and his attorney were squirreled in one of the interview rooms, deciding how best to play the evidence stacked up against them as the FBI grilled him. Porter Miles gave up easily, choosing to admit to his part in the van theft and not minding who he took down with him.

  Marcus was the surprise. Under questioning by Carter and Evan, he admitted that he’d been hired—or rather, coerced—by Thomas to keep an eye on Kimberly’s interviews. Considering he was one of the dealers on a nearby campus, Thomas had him under his thumb. When it appeared that she was getting too close, he ordered the hit on her.

  Kimberly sat in a hallway on a stiff plastic chair, staring at the comings and goings all around while clutching a cup of horrid coffee in her hands. Heavy footsteps were heard and she looked up just in time to see Chauncey King settle in the chair next to her.

  “Kimberly,” he greeted, his deep voice soft. He held her gaze and she was surprised as well as comforted by his presence.

  “Mr. King… I mean, Commissioner King—”

  “As soon as I heard you were here, I wanted to make sure you were okay.” A deep-chested chuckle erupted as he added, “And Hannah and Sharon would never forgive me if I didn’t get the intel back to them that I checked on you.”

  Her smile met his and she patted his arm. His smile dropped as his gaze moved over her abraded cheek, but she rushed to assure, “I’m fine. Really, I am. Just a few scratches.”

  He nodded and opened his mouth to say more when his phone vibrated. Pulling it from the clip on his belt, he looked at the caller ID and sighed. Connecting, he said, “I’m here, sitting right beside her. She’s fine. Why don’t you and Sharon fix something
simple for dinner and make it portable in case Kyle wants to take her directly home.” He listened and then added, “Because they may not want to come over… Kyle may just want her to himself this evening.”

  He hung up after endearments and she was unable to hold in her mirth at the huge police commissioner dealing with his wife and Kyle’s mom. “Thank you for that. I’m not sure I’m up to company tonight, but knowing how much they care… well, it’s nice.”

  As Kyle walked around the corner and approached, she and Chauncey stood. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her head. “Remember, we’re all family, Kimberly. See you soon.”

  With that, he nodded toward Kyle and walked back toward the elevators. Kyle reached her and pulled her into his arms. “You ready to go home, babe?”

  She leaned back and looked into his face, seeing the deep creases emanating from the corners of his eyes. She hated to see the toll his job took on him. Lifting her hand, she smoothed her fingertips over his face and smiled. “I’m always ready to go home with you.”

  He tossed a wave toward Alex and then turned with her tucked into his side. Once in the elevator, she said, “By the way, Chauncey said that Hannah and Sharon will bring dinner over to your house. He managed to talk them out of making us go there.”

  “Good man.”

  “I don’t know what they’ll bring, but I thought we could stop by the store on the way home. I’m in the mood for whipped cream.”

  It took a few seconds for her comment to sink in, but suddenly Kyle threw back his head and laughed. “Babe, anytime you want whipped cream, just say the word!”

  With a much more light-hearted Kyle by her side, they walked out of the station, arm in arm.

  30

  One Week Later

  Kimberly looked to the side as Kyle turned off the street and headed his SUV toward the Cardboard Cottages. She had told him she would drive her car so that he did not need to bring his new SUV, but she was not surprised when he immediately nixed that idea. He glanced her way, meeting her gaze, and they both smiled. Parking not too far from the tents, she looked out, her heart twinging as usual when she saw the conditions.