“Come on.”
They wended their way to the far side of the room, both of them doing their best to ignore the glances from around the room.
As they approached the desk, Corey saw Collier and Steph sitting together and a tall stately African-American woman in a crisp white uniform top and sharply creased black slacks hovering over their shoulders looking intently at his monitor.
“I want to give my statement,” Corey said to announce their presence and met each of their eyes in turn, working hard to keep her voice steady.
The woman straightened and regarded her for a moment. Her hair was cropped close to her head but it made her look anything but unfeminine. She had small diamond studs in each ear that flashed brightly against her dark skin, which was virtually unlined, but something in her dark eyes told Corey she was much older than she looked.
Steph smiled at them, her brows knitted together with concern. Collier pushed himself out of his chair and cleared his throat. “Corey Curtis, Dr. Thayer Reynolds this is Lieutenant Charlene Williams, head of Narcotics.”
Thayer extended her hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Lieutenant Williams.”
“And you, Dr. Reynolds.” She shook her hand.
“Is that the division you work for?” Thayer asked Collier. “Narcotics?”
Lieutenant Williams replied, “Sergeant Collier is the IOL, the cumbersomely named, Interdivisional Operations Liaison. Or, the title I’m not supposed to know— Shit-holder.”
Thayer shrugged. “I’m sorry, I don’t know what any of that means.”
“All the divisions have their own detectives and sergeants above them and lieutenants and captains and on and on up the chain. It’s an experimental position to have someone experienced in multiple divisions who can liaise when cases overlap or pick up cases that don’t really fall neatly into a division. That’s Collier.”
“Noted,” Corey muttered.
“Ms. Curtis.” Lieutenant Williams held out her hand and waited for Corey to shake it before continuing. “Sergeant Collier has informed his superiors of his arguably lawful, but most certainly inappropriate, arrest of you last night and your subsequent illness while in holding—full disclosure. If you would like to file a complaint regarding your treatment by an officer of this department, please know we will take it very seriously.”
Corey sucked in a sharp breath and couldn’t help notice Steph do the same. Her gaze was steady on Collier whose face was unreadable. “No, ma’am, I do not. Collier and I have always managed to resolve our differences. This time will be more challenging but I expect that to continue to be true—in time.” Her eyes never left him and she saw him release a slow breath. His face was still expressionless but his eyes softened with emotion.
“Very well.” Lieutenant Williams seemed satisfied. “I know you’ve had a difficult night, but if you say you’re up for it, I’m sure Collier and Austin would be pleased to take your statement. We could certainly use a break on this.” She nodded sharply and left.
Collier gestured to the chair next to his desk and Corey slumped into it, what little energy she had waning.
He dropped into his own chair and looked her over. “You don’t have to do this now.”
“Yes, I do,” she stated firmly. “I want to help if I can.”
She felt Thayer’s hand warm on the back of her neck. “I’m going to go get you something to eat.”
Corey offered her a smile. “Thank you.”
Steph jumped up and slid her chair around next to Corey. “You sit,” she said to Thayer. “I’ll go.”
Corey shook her head. “Steph, you don’t have to—”
“Quiet.” Steph squeezed her shoulder gently. “I get a first responders discount.”
Corey turned back to Collier to see him looking at her with concern and bristled. “Stop fucking looking at me like you’ve broken me,” she snapped. “I get headaches still, so what? It could have happened anyway. Last night was fucked up even before you came along. I’m fine.”
“Listen, Curtis, I appreciate—”
“If you’re going to talk about anything other than this case, I cannot hear you right now.” Corey swallowed hard. “Just get your damn notebook out.”
He nodded and pulled out his notebook. “Go ahead.”
“There were six of them.”
“Six?” He looked up. “You’re sure?”
“Yes.” Corey nodded slowly. “I couldn’t tell right away. When I was running after them they were moving really erratically, weaving back and forth, but when we got to the fence there were three already on the other side, two dropping down and one sitting on top.”
“Could you tell how old they are?”
“If any of them is over twenty-five I’d be shocked.”
“But not kids?”
“No.” She shook her head. “Older than that for sure but not very big. I don’t think a single one was taller than I am. They all looked slight, wiry like they haven’t filled out yet or don’t eat enough.”
“White?”
“Yes, all of them.”
“What else?”
“I’d guess they were all on something. The way they laughed and moved seemed unnatural and they talked really fast.”
“And you got a good look at one of them? Austin saw him on top of the fence, but didn’t get a good look at his face.”
“Yeah. White, early twenties, slight build, brown eyes, thin, long brown hair. He looked unwashed, greasy with a bad complexion and sharp features.”
“That all fits.”
“With what?”
“Sounds like the group we’ve been looking for. The vandalism and burglaries. Some reports say ‘pack of kids,’ some ‘wild boys,’ some ‘thugs’ and we’ve never had a description until now. They’ve stayed away from directly assaulting people and populated or occupied buildings until last night.”
“You think this is related to your drug ring? To the body at the lake?”
“I do. I’m just not sure how yet. At the very least, they’re using and getting a line on them could lead us to the rest.” He tapped his pen on his desk. “You okay to go through some photos? See if you recognize one of them?”
“Yeah, I’m good.
Chapter Twenty-Four
“Fuck. He’s not fucking here.” She raked her hands through her hair. It was well after noon when Corey slammed the last book closed.
Steph and Thayer had been out again for food and coffee and Corey’s hand tremor now was more than likely the result of all the caffeine she had consumed to battle back the sedatives and total exhaustion.
“It’s fine, Curtis.” Collier stacked the photo books on his desk. “We have your description. It’s good.”
She knew he was just as frustrated but had been holding back. All their normal easy banter and good-natured ribbing was gone. He had been tense and careful with her, checking his words on more than one occasion, and every time it reminded Corey of why he felt he needed to, adding weight to her already heavy heart. She didn’t want them to be so damaged, and though they never socialized or saw each other except over a dead body, she felt the loss of their friendship acutely.
“We’ll put out your description. Something will turn up.” He looked at her and she couldn’t stand the look of regret on his face, but she didn’t have the words to ease his pain.
Thayer slid her hand around her shoulder. “It’s time to go, sweetheart.”
She turned and looked at her for the first time in hours, seeing her own fatigue mirrored in Thayer’s face. “Yeah.”
“I’ll walk you out.” Steph stood from where she’d perched on the edge of her desk.
Corey gestured to the stack of books. “Sorry, I wasn’t more help.”
Collier met her gaze. He opened his mouth to speak and slammed it shut. Corey had no idea what he was going to say and her heart cracked open again at their distance. “You helped,” he finally commented. “You always help.”
The sun was clouded o
ver but the afternoon warm as they made their way to the visitor lot, giving Corey some needed respite from the brutal lighting of the precinct. Thayer unlocked the passenger side of Corey’s truck and waited for her to settle.
Steph sighed, lips pressed in a hard line as she looked at them. “We’ll find him.” She placed a hand on Corey’s arm through the open window. “Are you okay?”
Corey simply nodded.
“I’m sorry about what happened last night.”
Thayer bristled. “Don’t apologize for him.”
“I’m not,” Steph replied and met their eyes in turn. “I told you my job was to protect you.” She looked at Corey. “And I didn’t do that.”
Corey raised her head, shaking it slowly. “It’s okay. It wasn’t your fault,” she rasped, her awareness fading. “Have you found Harold Crandall?”
“No.”
“Is there a warrant out for his arrest?” Thayer asked.
“For what?” Steph gestured helplessly. “We can’t connect him to anything. Right now he’s just wanted for questioning with regard to the body of his nephew found on the property that he’s actually not the legal owner of. We have shit. But the longer he stays hidden, the more convinced I am he’s good for something, though it’s not looking like murder. No activity on his cards or accounts. No trace on his cell number. No sign of his car. Mail hasn’t been picked up. He’s definitely lying low and using cash. No sign of that damn boat that everyone knows but no one has seen. I mean, Jesus, we’re not talking Lake Superior. It’s like a little over two square miles and drains to the river via a couple of small creeks, which may or not be large enough to get a boat down depending on the time of year. I just don’t understand.”
Thayer shrugged. “There are a lot of inlets and islands. It would be pretty easy to tuck away for a while and stay hidden.”
“I don’t think he’s staying hidden exactly. I think he’s still operating. I just don’t know how.”
“You positively identified the body as Robert Crandall?” Corey mumbled into her arm.
“You didn’t hear that from me.”
Corey raised her head. “I don’t care right now.”
Steph offered them a small smile. “I have to go. Get some rest, you two.”
“Corey, honey.” Thayer caressed her face to wake her, her eyes fluttering open. “We’re home.” Thayer had wanted to drive straight back but knew she had to get errands out of the way first or she’d fall into to bed and never go back out.
Corey had fallen asleep within minutes of leaving the station and showed no sign of stirring each time Thayer stopped, so she left her in the truck and took care of the shopping and drug store after noticing Corey’s prescriptions needed to be refilled.
Corey swallowed and nodded. “’kay.” She stumbled out of the truck toward the house. “I need a shower.”
Thayer unlocked the door and waited to make sure her shower was under way before bringing in the groceries. She powered through and made a large pan of lasagna as well. She knew Corey loved it and they could eat it all weekend. It was in the oven on low while Thayer took her own shower and crawled into bed, snuggling close to Corey’s warm, naked body, breathing in the smell of her freshly washed hair and soft, clean skin.
Thayer was on the deck, eyes closed, basking in the warmth of the last of the late afternoon sun after her nap. The slider opened and she turned and smiled. Corey padded out in bare feet, faded, low-slung jeans and T-shirt. Her hair was sticking up carelessly, her yellow-tinted glasses not enough to hide her bright eyes but changing their color to blue-green.
Thayer felt herself fall in love all over again at Corey’s sleepy smile and casual slouch, the way her shirt pulled up, revealing a flash of tight abs, as she drank from the bottle of beer between her fingers.
Thayer arched a brow in silent admonishment.
“Don’t worry.” Corey smiled crookedly, obviously pretending to misunderstand the look. “I brought you one too.” She set another beer on the arm of Thayer’s chair.
She couldn’t help her smile as Corey settled into the chair next to her and tipped her beer toward her. They clinked bottles and sat back, the silence comfortable and safe. A heron flew low across the lake and a mallard pair paddled lazily, fishing for dinner just off her dock against the soundtrack of birdsong and breeze against the trees, the tops of a few just starting to show a hint of fall color.
“Do you want to talk about it?” Thayer asked quietly.
Corey took a long drink of her beer. “My heart hurts. I’m afraid we’re broken.”
Thayer could hear the sadness in her voice. “Irreparably?”
“I don’t know how he and I can ever be the same after this.”
“It doesn’t have to be the same to be fixed, does it? Like the Japanese art of Kintsugi when broken pottery is repaired with gold or platinum. A break becomes an honored part of its story instead of trying to cover it up like it didn’t happen.”
Corey smiled. “You should have been a philosopher.”
Thayer let the beauty of the lake wash over them again as the sun moved lower in the sky. “We were broken once not that long ago,” she said softly. “Now we’re whole again but not the same. We’re stronger. We’re better.”
“Yes, I’ve been thinking about that too.”
“Tell me,” Thayer encouraged.
“The other day when Collier and I were getting in each other’s face and you said we were a lot alike… Steph said the same thing to me later that morning and even Rachel had something to say about it last night.” Corey leaned forward in her chair swinging her bottle between her fingers. “I guess I see it a lot better now. It’s not exactly the same, but when I got injured and I got scared, I was way out of my depth emotionally. I was seriously incapable of dealing with my own shit. I lashed out at you because, like Collier, when things get heavy my default emotion is anger.”
Thayer’s eyes sparkled. “That’s very insightful and self-aware, sweetheart.”
“I know, right?”
“So what do you want to do?” She grew serious, her own anger simmering again. “What he did to you, for many it would be an unforgivable abuse.”
Corey winced. “Is it for you?”
It was Thayer’s turn to sigh heavily. “That’s not my decision to make.”
“I want to know what you think, Thayer.”
“I think Jim Collier loves you more than he will ever let on. I think no one feels worse about what happened than he does. I think that even your forgiveness won’t alleviate the guilt he feels about hurting you. He will be hardest on himself, just like you were.”
“Yeah. I think so too.”
“If it helps, last night I overheard Steph giving him hell over what happened. It was bloody.”
“Really?” Corey’s mouth gaped. “Good for her. She’s perfect for him.”
“Uh-huh. What are you going to do?”
“I knew the answer to that the moment I woke up this morning,” she admitted. “But I don’t want to think about it anymore tonight.”
“I love you very much, Corey Curtis.” Thayer reached for her hand, lacing their fingers together. “Would you like to eat out here? I made lasagna.”
“I know.” Corey’s eyes flashed mischievously. “It’s your best one yet.”
Thayer scowled playfully. “Cheater.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Corey was having the loveliest time on a picnic with Thayer and Michelle Obama until “The Imperial March” from Star Wars started playing, interrupting them, and some kid kept tugging at her arm, asking if she got her tattoo in prison.
“Corey.” Thayer shook her arm, her voice gravelly with sleep. “Corey, your phone.”
“What?”
“Answer your phone,” Thayer mumbled before rolling over and putting a pillow over her head.
The ringtone stopped and Corey sighed. Letting her eyes close again for a moment when the music started again. She heard Thayer groan from benea
th the pillow.
Corey banged her hand around on the nightstand to find her phone. “’lo?”
“Curtis, it’s Collier.”
“Yeah, I know.” Corey rubbed her tired eyes. “What the hell time is it?”
“Late. Or early.”
Corey held her phone away from her face for a second and squinted at the display. “Why the hell are you calling me at three seventeen in the morning?”
“I’m, uh, sorry to bother you but I need you to come down to the hospital.”
Corey paused, absorbing his words before shooting bolt upright. “Jesus, what’s wrong? Are you all right?”
“What? Yes. I’m fine. Everyone is fine. I didn’t mean to alarm you.”
“Corey?” Thayer’s sleepy voice questioned in concern and she reached for Corey.
“It’s okay, babe,” Corey said. “What’s going on?”
“There was an OD last night. He fits the description of your guy. Can you come take a look at him?”
“Yeah,” Corey said. “The morgue?”
“He’s still in the ED.”
“Give me half an hour.”
Thayer flicked on the light. “Is everything all right?”
She scrubbed her face. “Collier thinks they might have one of the guys that trashed Rachel’s place. Died in the ED tonight, er, this morning. He wants me to come down.”
“Okay. I’ll get dressed.”
Corey grabbed her before she had a chance to get out of bed and pulled her back, wrapping an arm around her naked waist. “I would rather you didn’t.” She brushed an unruly lock of hair from Thayer’s face and nuzzled her neck. “I like you like this.”
Thayer dropped her head back. “You shouldn’t go alone.”
“I need you here…” Corey kissed her neck and along her jaw, ending at her lips. “…keeping the bed warm and giving me something to look forward to coming home to. You know, after leftover lasagna.”
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