by Diane Saxon
Ryan’s soft snort had her narrowing her eyes as she concentrated on keeping her distance. ‘Ironic. Doesn’t Lamonte mean something like man of law?’
‘How would you know that?’ Jenna grimaced at the radio as though it were Ryan himself.
‘One of the instructors at the gym is called Lamonte. Specialising in the weights section. Funny guy, always telling us its Lamonte’s Law when he instructs us.’
‘Right.’
Ryan filed away information like a memory drive. Always useful when you needed to sift through data. His quick, lively mind forever willing to share.
Interesting, but irrelevant; she needed to get them back on track with limited time. Big Lamonte couldn’t be travelling far.
‘He was carrying four coffees which makes me assume he’s about to meet up with three other people. I don’t think it’s a knitting club, sir.’
The little snort of laughter burst through the static. ‘Can you hold back till I get my ducks in line?’
‘No, sir. If I do, I suspect I’m going to miss out on a four-way drugs pass. I need to be on it right now. As I said, I have DC Ellis and DC Downey with me. We’ll be fine, but backup would be appreciated as soon as…’
There was a second’s pause as Jenna followed the others at a distance onto the retail car park. ‘Leave it with me, Sergeant, and I’ll get it sorted. Keep me informed.’
Lamonte pulled his BMW up in front of Rude Health, the new gym on the retail park, a mere four and a half minutes’ drive from The Coffee Shack. Handy.
Mason bypassed him and made his way to park in front of one of the cheap stores, far enough away for him not to raise any suspicion. Ryan pulled up short in front of Sainsbury’s, slipping his car in between two others on the lot. It was quiet at that time of the morning, but Sainsbury’s opened early and had a healthy stream of customers.
Jenna cruised her own car several spaces away, positioning herself beyond a small white Kia Picanto. She cracked open the passenger window an inch to keep the air circulating for Fleur and hoped the little dog didn’t freeze. Her body had a permanent tremble.
As Lamonte unfolded himself from the seat and emerged balancing the tray of four coffees in one hand, Jenna’s radio exploded into life almost popping her heart out through her throat.
‘Shit. Sorry, Sarge.’ Ryan’s voice stumbled a little before he continued. ‘I know him. It’s not a coincidence, he is the bloody instructor from the gym.’
‘You’re only just telling us now?’ Incredulity laced Mason’s voice.
Ryan’s voice wound up to a higher pitch, just short of squeak. ‘I didn’t see him come out of The Coffee Shack. He was already in his car when I realised we were on a case.’
‘It’s okay.’ She kept her voice even, they needed to move, but the information Jenna required from Ryan was more pressing. ‘Tell me about him. Make it quick, Ryan.’
‘He’s one of the instructors at Rude Health. That’s the one I registered with about six weeks ago now. He’s been spotting me on the weights.’ Ryan let out a groan. ‘He knows I’m a police officer.’
Shocked, she couldn’t help herself. ‘Do you tell everyone what you do for a living?’
‘Well. Yeah. I’m proud to serve.’
Sometimes discretion was the better part of valour. Call her cynical, but he’d learn. Not everyone thought the police were wonderful. Not everyone wanted to be your friend once they found out what you did for a living.
‘Jesus.’
Jenna ignored Mason as her mind whirled through a quick realignment of the possibilities. ‘Right, Mason, you and I will go in. Me first. I want to see if he’s passing over more than just coffee to these other three. Mason, you just tail me until something happens. If he doesn’t pass the drugs, I want to know where he stashes them.’
‘Right.’ Mason agreed.
‘Ryan,’ she instructed, ‘two minutes and I want you to follow up the rear. Keep the exit closed off in case anybody bolts.’
‘Sarge.’
‘And for the love of Jesus, don’t let him see you.’
‘Yes, Sarge.’
Jenna glanced into the footwell and pointed a finger at Fleur. ‘You. You can stay where you are.’ The little dog’s bulging eyes gave a slow blink as she lowered her head onto her front paws as though she understood every word.
Jenna nudged open her door and slipped from the car. Not looking back as she slammed the door, she depressed the key fob to lock it.
She lengthened her stride to catch up with Lamonte and arrived at the entrance to the gym, slipping inside before the automatic doors fully closed.
Adrenaline spiked through to make her heartbeat speed up. Not through fear or anxiety, but a kick of energetic excitement. This was the job. This was what she loved.
She glanced at the small lift in the left corner of the confined, sterile entrance and caught her reflection in the brushed steel doors. She tilted her head to catch the sound of Lamonte’s footsteps tapping up the L-shaped stairwell above her. Big, he may be, but he could move.
Careful to keep on her toes, she took the stairs two at a time. The trick was to keep far enough behind so he didn’t notice her, but not so far that she’d lose him before he reached his targets so she could witness the drug swap before she made a move.
She bumped open the door at the top of the stairs and moved fast into a hallway. She kept him in sight as he rounded a corner to enter the main reception area.
Breath coming in quick snatches of excitement, she put on a spurt and slipped through the automatic doors at the end of the short run of hallway. She followed him as he grunted at the receptionist, all belligerent arrogance and rolling shoulders.
Evidently unimpressed with his attitude, the receptionist raised her hand to tuck a thick swathe of gunmetal hair behind her ear and pursed her lips, so a fine spray of wrinkles feathered out from her mouth. As her gaze clashed with Jenna’s, her eyebrows twitched skywards, and she broke into a genuine smile.
Jenna raised one hand to display her badge and tapped her forefinger against her mouth to indicate for the lady to keep quiet as she sailed on past, keeping just ten paces behind Lamonte.
She could rely on Mason to brief the woman and take her details for when they needed to question her. If there was one thing Jenna had learnt in her career, it was don’t piss off the receptionist. They were the door-openers of life and they knew everything.
Muscles bunched, ready for any eventuality, Jenna welcomed the dash of anticipation coursing through her veins. It had been a while since she’d tailed someone.
Lamonte’s arrogance was such that he never even thought to turn around and check if anyone was behind him. If he did, would he even recognise her? Had he ‘seen’ her in The Coffee Shack, or had she remained invisible to him?
She stepped through the next set of sliding doors as Lamonte approached a group of three people all wearing the gold and navy uniform of the gym. Jenna veered off and headed straight for the water cooler on her right. She flipped a plastic cup from the dispenser and touched her finger to the button for ambient water as she gave the room a quick scan.
The dedicated and the devoted focused on their workouts, without so much as raising their heads to check out who else might arrive. EarPods in, gazes firmly fixed on the screens with the early-morning news. There was little chance they’d take much notice of her.
The cool of the air conditioning sent a quick shiver down Jenna’s spine. Damn, but she could have done with that coffee she’d left in her car. The caffeine shot to her blood was just what she needed.
As she kept her head bowed, Jenna surveyed the four people.
Young female, bright blonde ponytail high on her head. The whippy end reached the bottom of her shoulder blades. Petite, around five-foot two, verging on skinny with her hipbones clearly visible through her expensive Lycra leggings. Muscles stringing out over sharp bones. Lips plumped, eyebrows drawn on. Fake tan, but the nails were natural and her own. Probably wasn�
�t allowed to wear fake ones when helping with spotting. Rip one of those suckers off and she’d soon know about it.
With a wide smile exposing bright white teeth, the young woman reached with both hands for the coffee Lamonte passed to her and cradled it between her bony fingers. Long, heavy eyelashes flirted over smoky grey eyes. If an exchange had occurred, they were damned slick. Too slick.
Lamonte passed another cup to a short, square guy. Five-nine. Dark hair, neat beard cut in so he resembled a garden gnome, with his head squatting on broad over-blown shoulders, which gave the appearance he had no neck. His short forehead permanently wrinkled, dipped thick eyebrows over piggy eyes. Possibly blue. Mid-thirties. Neanderthal man. He wrapped one stubby-fingered hand around his cup and took a long hard swig of the coffee, his throat working as he glugged down the fluid.
The third guy leaned in. He slipped his fingers under the tray and took it, together with the last remaining cup. Perfect white teeth flashed against flawless coffee-coloured skin. Smooth, handsome, his brown eyes danced with intelligence. Not enough to distract Jenna from Lamonte’s sleight of hand. Although barely noticeable, she’d been looking for it as he slipped it under the tray in the pass-over.
Confident without glancing behind to check that she was in Mason’s sights, Jenna took the eight long strides to reach the foursome just as the handsome man slipped one fisted hand deep into his trouser pocket.
Jenna held her badge in her left hand and raised it as she approached, fully aware that the first thirty seconds of reaction from the group would dictate the way the situation went.
‘Morning guys, I’m Detective Sergeant Jenna Morgan from Malinsgate Police Station, and this,’ she indicated behind her as Mason drew up, ‘is Detective Constable Mason Ellis.’ She trailed her gaze around the group and kept a fixed friendly smile in place while she evaluated them.
Lamonte’s already hard gaze went flat as he clenched his jaw. Directly opposite her, Garden Gnome returned her assessment with cool, squinty eyes. Definitely blue. The young blonde’s knees buckled before she took a hold of herself and her coffee sloshed through the little sippy hole in the top. Shame. Jenna had hoped it had only been Lamonte and the handsome one involved, but from the guilt sliding across all four of their faces, they all played a part.
‘I have reasonable suspicion to believe you are in possession of a controlled substance and I’ll be detaining you all for the purposes of conducting a drugs search.’
The blonde’s jaw dropped, and her sleek black eyebrows shot up into her hairline. ‘Not me.’ She took a step away. ‘Not drugs. No way have I got anything to do with drugs. My dad would kill me.’ Her desperate protest held a spark of truth, but Jenna already had her plan of action. It wouldn’t do blondie any harm to be questioned. She’d soon be out if it was established she had nothing to do with it.
Cold fury slid through Lamonte’s narrowed eyes. ‘What makes you think anyone here has drugs?’ His jaw flexed as he stretched himself to full height. Tall and imposing. Meant to intimidate, but Jenna stretched her lips into a patient smile, confident she had a handle on the situation. ‘I witnessed you passing something over.’
He made one negative shake of the head, superior and overconfident. ‘I think you’ll find the only things I’ve passed over were their coffees.’ His lips twisted as he ran a critical gaze over her, and recognition slipped into his eyes. ‘Which, as you know, because you were stood beside me, I’ve just bought at The Coffee Shack.’ It was good he’d confirmed that piece of information voluntarily, then there would be no question of it along the line when she testified in court.
He took a breath and a lopsided grin slid across his face, but the hard-eyed stare never slipped. ‘The only other thing you might have seen was me handing over sugar. You’re going to look fucking stupid when all you come up with is a dozen little packets of white sugar.’
The zap of doubt fizzed through Jenna’s head to make her question herself. If it had only been the exchange in the gym she’d witnessed, he may have thrown her conviction to the wind, but the scene in The Coffee Shack flashed into her mind and shot confidence back through her veins. Sugar came in little white paper packs from The Coffee Shack, not packaged in tiny see-through zip lock bags.
She kept her smile easy. ‘You won’t have a problem then if we conduct a search, will you? Then we can escort you to Malinsgate Police Station, should the need arise.’
On high alert, Jenna’s muscles twitched. Now was the moment of reaction. Would it run like a handbook exercise, or go to hell in a handbasket?
Aware of Mason as he stepped to her side, Jenna kept her attention on Lamonte and handsome boy.
The little blonde was no threat, she’d already frozen with shock. Her perfect lips still forming a silent ‘oh’.
Garden Gnome was the one who broke from the opposite side of the wide circle, a classic ploy Jenna expected, although for the size and build of the man his speed was impressive. It was a ruse, a diversionary tactic. The one without the drugs made a break for it and in those first twenty seconds with all attention on the breaker, the evidence would disappear, and they’d have no case.
Adrenaline spiked through, but Jenna held her ground without taking her gaze off Lamonte as Garden Gnome rushed her, a mere eight paces away. She shot her right hand out towards the group, not quite sure where Ryan had positioned himself. ‘Don’t move!’
Blondie squeaked and leapt back, still in Jenna’s eyeline.
Barely an inch away from her, Garden Gnome hit the ground, the mezzanine floor shuddered under his weight and vibrated through the soles of her feet as Mason delivered his classic straight-armed punch. He dropped the man to the floor before Garden Gnome had the chance for his meaty fists to connect with Jenna.
A spume of frothy coffee burst upwards from the takeout cup which Garden Gnome dropped as he hit the ground. Jenna’s lips twisted, but she never so much as flinched as it splattered down the front of her smart, black work trousers and across the top of her neat, leather ankle boots, her attention purely focused on Lamonte and the other male.
Handsome boy dropped the tray, whipped around as his coffee hit the floor, but before he could take more than a step, Ryan had the man’s arm up behind his back. Considerably lighter-framed than the other man, Ryan held the upper hand on training, technique and the element of surprise as he lowered him to his knees on the floor with a certain gentility and slipped on a pair of wrist restraints. A beautiful textbook manoeuvre. The boy was coming on.
Jenna parked the small sliver of admiration for her young officer’s development until later when she’d allow herself to gloat a little. Not least because a deep, guttural growl resonated from behind her, making the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. If there was one sound that would make her freeze her arse to the spot, it was that of Blue, a highly trained police search and drugs dog. He may not be one of their attack dogs, but that didn’t mean to say he didn’t have long, sharp teeth he’d willingly sink into human flesh should the need arise, and the command be given.
Without taking her gaze from Lamonte, Jenna held still as Blue moved past her, sniffed Lamonte from the ankles, all the way up the length of his legs, and ended up with his nose in the man’s crotch. Lamonte might have attitude, but he never twitched a muscle, didn’t so much as breathe as fear whipped through his eyes. She had to admire the dog’s style. There wasn’t a man on earth who would do anything different when his tackle was quite clearly at risk.
Without a verbal command, the Belgian Malinois dipped his head and started digging at Lamonte’s feet.
Jenna recognised the aggressive alert sign for drugs and relief swarmed through her. She was right, she’d not made a mistake. Jesus Christ, she’d had no doubt, but she’d never have lived it down if little baggies of sugar were the only thing that exchanged hands.
Affirmation from Blue made her heart sing.
The solid, square form of Sergeant Chris Bennett stepped into her peripheral vision.
‘I heard your call. I was just grabbing my breakfast from Sainsbury’s.’ He cast a cool, calm gaze over the scene and ran his tongue over his teeth. ‘Blue says we have drugs.’
Jenna grinned. Blue had never been known to be wrong.
‘Come, boy.’ The dog shot to Chris’s side, whipping his backside around so he sat to attention, bang up against his handler’s left leg. Blue lifted his right paw and waited for his reward, which was quick in coming and then slid his gaze back to Lamonte to keep him frozen to the spot.
With all the eyes she needed on her suspects, Jenna stepped back to survey her scene and take in Garden Gnome on the floor. Mason seemed forever to step into the fray to take someone out on her behalf. She kept her voice low as she moved closer to him. ‘Did you hit him because I’m a female?’
‘I hit him because you’re human. He was bloody close. I thought he was going to have you around the neck. It would have been messy. You were in the line of fire, and he’s a big bastard.’ He slanted her a look. ‘I’m a bigger bastard and there’s no way I’ll stand by and watch you, or anyone for that matter, get hurt.’ He stared down at the inert body at his feet and clucked his tongue. ‘All it took was one punch from me. If I’d let him get to you, I have total faith that you would have got him – eventually. But you’d still be scrambling around on the floor right now, and that’s too painful to watch. Call it ego, call it sexism. It’s neither. It’s preservation. Of you, me and a whole lot of time we don’t have.’ Mason hunkered down next to the body and gave the man a prod. ‘I may have exerted a little more force than I thought.’ He sucked air in through his teeth with over-exaggerated regret.
As his head came up to look at Jenna, the man on the floor sprang to life, wrapped a beefy arm around Mason’s throat and dragged him down across his barrel chest.
Mason’s eyes went wide and he coughed out a surprised splutter as the man’s muscular forearm tightened around his throat to send his face an unhealthy puce.
Without a moment’s hesitation, Jenna placed her booted heel directly across the other man’s throat, exerting enough pressure to cut off his oxygen supply. She rubbed her fingers across her lips and met the man’s panicked gaze while she applied a little more pressure.