by Hargrove, A.
“If you give me a chance to speak, sir, I can explain.”
Oh, no. It had already gone up the line. My head was beginning to pound.
“Yes, sir, I realize it’s not my jurisdiction.” Then more yelling. Whoever it was, was not happy.
“Paul McCutcheon is a friend of Mr. Kent’s.”
Acer perked up at that.
“Sir, Mr. Kent had a key to his home.”
The shouting had quieted down. Art stood there and I waited for him to leave, but he didn’t. He didn’t usually take these calls with an audience.
“I understand.” The hand holding the phone slowly straightened as he looked at the ceiling. I was waiting for a conversation with Jesus, but it didn’t happen. Instead, he turned to both of us.
“You will be happy to hear our director is coming here tomorrow to talk to you two. Mr. McCutcheon has been under surveillance for several months. He is suspected of having ties to the underworld. Apparently, you have completely destroyed their investigation and their men were made when you went inside. The footsteps you heard were those of the agents coming in to warn you. They wanted you to get out because they knew you were in danger. After you left, two agents were killed.”
“Oh, shit.”
“Oh, shit doesn’t begin to sum it up, Chambers. You and Mr. Kent have opened Pandora’s Box.”
I slammed my hands down. “Why didn’t they tell us when you asked for a search warrant?”
“It’s been undercover. The locals didn’t know about it.”
Acer coughed and then asked, “What exactly is this underworld you’re talking about?”
“Organized crime. Basically the mob. We don’t know which one because there are so many. But at least we know who orchestrated the trafficking,” Art said.
“Oh, God. Paulie, what the hell did you get yourself involved in?” Acer asked.
Art scoffed. “Only Paulie can answer that and I have a very bad feeling about where he is.”
Acer raised his brows. “Meaning?”
“I suspect Mr. McCutcheon is no longer walking this earth.”
Chapter Eight
ACER
I was livid. What the hell had Paulie been thinking? Maybe he’d been a little shady, but I never suspected this. “Was I that blind and ignorant?”
“No, it’s not you. People like him do what they do for various reasons, but mostly the money. You weren’t blind, Acer. They’re very good at fooling others and maintaining a facade.” Art was the one who explained this.
“That’s why he was so insistent on me not looking inside the trailer. And that’s the very reason I did.”
Isla grabbed my hand. “Wait. Let’s go back to that. You never told us that.”
“Yes, I did.”
“Not in the way you just did,” Art added.
“Well, yeah. He told me not to look when I threatened to, but it bothered me so much with how sketchy that guy was at the shipyard, I just had to.”
“That makes sense.” Art left the conference room and came back within minutes. He carried a file with him and I was sure it was mine. As he rifled through the papers, he found what he was looking for. “Your statement didn’t reflect anything about what Paulie said. All you told us was how he gave you the instructions on where to go, what time, and then where to take the trailer. You mention here that you called him, but left the other part out.”
“Honestly, I was checking to see if there were computer parts because a side of me figured maybe I’d take one for collateral if I didn’t receive payment for the delivery.”
Art closed the file and said, “You need a security detail. I’m ordering one for your brother’s place too. I think they’ll be fine, but it’ll be a precaution.”
“They live in a neighborhood with security,” Acer said. “And their alarm system is pretty tight.”
“Which means nothing to criminals like these. I’m only making you aware, Acer.” I took him seriously. When Brax found out about this, he was going to strangle me.
“My brother is going to kill me. I’m sure he’ll hire a team of bodyguards for his wife.”
“Not a bad idea, but we’ll also provide protection since you lived there.”
“Lived?”
“You can’t go back. You’ve been tagged. You too, Chambers. Both of you are going to a safe house.”
“Boss, I can handle myself.”
“Isla, you’re one of the best agents I have. I’d put you against anyone. However, if you get hit by six guys, you don’t stand a chance without backup. I won’t put you at risk. Yes, you brought this down on yourself, but you’re not going to die for your mistakes. Tonight you both will stay in a hotel with protection. After tomorrow, you’ll be moved to a safe house until this is over.”
“Safe house. What exactly does that mean other than what I’ve seen on TV?”
Isla groaned. “Come on, Art. Can’t you just let us stay at my place and give me a full complement of agents?”
“No. And don’t even try to finagle out of this. I’ve made up my mind. Make a list of what you need from your house and I’ll send someone to get everything.”
Isla wasn’t happy. “Ruffles.”
“Excuse me?” Art asked.
“My dog, Ruffles.” His stern features broke into a grin. “How did I not know you had a dog named Ruffles?”
She shrugged. “No idea. I need her with me. If anything happens to Ruffles, I’ll personally take out those assholes.”
“Fine. What about letting her stay with someone?”
“Pfft. Mom’s allergic and I wouldn’t trust Lenox to feed her. She’d probably starve to death living with him.”
“We’ll pick up Ruffles. Anything else?”
“Well, yeah. Let me make a list. And tell whoever you send, if they go through my panty drawer, I’ll strangle them myself.”
Art snickered.
“This is not funny, Art.”
“No, it’s not. I’ll send a female agent. How’s that?”
“Fine.”
Art shook his head. Then it was my turn. “Acer, what about you?”
“I can have my brother bring my things here. I’ll be fine with what I have until tomorrow. I don’t want to wake them this late. But can you tell me a little more about the safe house?”
“Nope. You’ll find out when you get there. That’s why it’s safe.”
He was good with Brax bringing my things over and an hour later I was sitting on a bed in a hotel room, wondering how my life changed so quickly. A soft knock sounded on the door.
I checked the peephole, and it was Isla. There were two other armed guys out there sitting on chairs with tall cups of coffee. I offered them a key to my room in case they needed the bathroom. They refused.
“Why? It’s better than running down the hall.” Our rooms were on the first floor.
“Because if someone finds out you’re here, and they get to us, we won’t have a way for them to get inside your room.”
“You really think that’ll happen?”
“We hope not, but it adds an extra layer of security.”
I opened the door to let Isla in.
“Hey, I was wondering if you wanted to grab a beer.”
“Sounds good, but how?”
“We can send one of the guys to get one. I’ll take his place while he’s gone. There’s a convenience store right across the street.”
That would sure hit the spot, but I didn’t want to take advantage of them. “Only if you ask.”
She grinned. “No problem.” I listened as she opened the door and made her request.
“Anything else, princess?”
She looked at me.
“Nah, I’m good, but thanks.”
“I’ll be out there until he gets back.”
She disappeared and I figured I may as well join them too. I was too jacked up to sit.
They were chatting when I opened the door. “Do you mind if I hang with you two?”
; “Not at all.” The guy left behind was named Scot. He was maybe in his thirties and seemed pretty cool. “Isla was saying you were interested in law enforcement.”
“I am if I can get my degree. I figured I’d start school in January, but now with this, I’m not sure how.”
Isla waved an arm, and said, “You should be good. The next couple of days will be more telling than anything. But you can still apply and get your classes in order. You’re not too late for that, are you?”
“From what I could tell, no. As long as I’m in good standing with my transcripts, I should be fine.”
Our beer supplier, Thomas, came back and handed Isla the six-pack. “You owe me one.”
“Hey thanks,” she said.
“If you two need anything, just knock,” I said.
They nodded and we went into my room.
We both sat on the bed and took long swigs from our cold bottles.
“This hits the spot,” I said. Then we clinked bottles. “Thanks for thinking of it.”
That night we learned a lot about each other. She liked movies, especially ones that made her laugh, even the slapstick type. I was on board with that. She loved pizza. Who didn’t? Ruffles was her number one. I needed to meet this pooch. Her brother gave her hell about her job but the two of them could not be any closer. Tomorrow was her grandmother’s birthday and she hated to miss it. Her mom had thrown a party tonight and since she’d been on duty, she had to miss it. She’d planned to visit her the following day, only now this came up. Her dad had walked out on the family when she was only five, so she didn’t have great memories of him. What she did remember was him constantly yelling at her mom and his slurred speech.
“When I was old enough to understand, Mom told me he was an alcoholic and used to hit her. I’m glad Lenox wasn’t the size he is now because the man would’ve gotten the beating of his life.” It must’ve been tough for her to talk about because her hands were clasped together and her gaze was focused on them.
“Is that why you went into law enforcement?”
She licks her lips before answering. “Maybe. I didn’t think so at the time. It might’ve been in my subconscious, but I’m not sure, to be honest. All I know is from the time I was in junior high, it’s all I wanted to do. I’d see the troublemaking kids in school and knew they’d end up in jail one day. Me, all I wanted to do was be the good guy. I never did anything remotely bad. I didn’t drink until college, and I’ve never smoked weed. You’re probably laughing at me.”
“I think it’s admirable. With peer pressure the way it is, I’m sure that wasn’t an easy road to walk down.”
“No, but I had big bad Lenox too. Everyone was afraid of him because he’s huge. And you’re not small yourself. I’m sure you didn’t get bullied.”
“Bullying comes in many forms, not just the physical kind. I was taunted because of Brax and the fact I wasn’t as good as he was. I was a better baseball player, but that’s it.”
As a kid, I was the youngest and always looked up to my brothers. Brax was the super athlete. He was damn smart too, but not as smart as my other brothers, Raiden and Cruze. Both of them were brilliant and blew even Brax away. Trying to compete with my brothers was impossible.
“Why the frown?”
Shaking the memories away, I said, “It’s nothing really. I grew up in a loving home but I was always competing for attention. It was probably in my head, but I could never live up to the successes of any of my brothers. Brax, well you know his talent. And my other two brothers are super smart. Like Mensa smart.”
“Have you ever applied yourself?”
Her question was unexpected and something I hadn’t thought of. “It’s been a while since I’ve been in school and was interested in anything, so I don’t know.”
“Fair enough. Maybe this time around you’ll find your niche and really go for it. I’m sure if the smarts run in your family, you must have a healthy dose of it too. You just haven’t accessed it yet.”
I laughed. “I hope so, but I like the way you think.”
It was after one when she mentioned the time.
“Yeah. The guys are probably thinking I’m in here banging you.”
She broke out into a loud cackle. “I doubt it. They know me too well to think that.”
“What? Are you some kind of a hard-ass?” I teased her.
“You might say that.”
“I’m glad you told me. Then I won’t embarrass myself by trying my smooth moves on you.”
This time, she really howled. “Oh, my. Care to tell me what those are?”
“Not a chance. I’d never give away my secrets. Besides, I’m still holding out so that you won’t punch me if I try anything.”
All hints of laughter disappeared. “I’d never punch you. The worst that would happen is I’d kiss you back.” Then she jumped off the bed and when she got to the door, she blew me a kiss. “Goodnight, smooth mover.”
I was chuckling when the door closed behind her. I looked forward to seeing her in the morning.
Chapter Nine
ISLA
Acer had been interesting. We’d had a great time even though we’d only talked. The best part of all was he hadn’t tried anything. I hated guys who thought the first time you hung out with them they had the right to maul you. That did not work for me. I had to laugh when he called me a hard-ass, but he was dead on. I wore that badge proudly. The guys at work knew it too. When I first joined their group, they teased me a lot, until one day, one of them actually had the nerve to hit me up for a little action, as he called it. I gave him a little action all right. He ended up with a set of bruised balls and an ego to match. After that incident, I became one of the guys and he became one of my closest work friends.
Art knew something had gone down, but no one ever spoke a word and it hasn’t been mentioned since. Joining this office presented its problems because there weren’t many women in it, but I was strong enough to handle it and I did better than I expected. The best part of all—I earned the respect of the men I worked with.
We grabbed a quick breakfast in the morning and headed for the office. On the way, we discussed how Acer would get his things.
“I need to call my brother.”
“Maybe wait until we get to the office and talk with Art.”
That was what he did.
Art suggested Brax or Reynolds meet one of the agents in another location to get his things. That way, they wouldn’t risk leaving a trail to where Acer had been staying, leaving their address undisclosed.
After Acer made his dreaded phone call, he reported back to us. “My brother is pissed. He said I put his wife in danger and wants to punch out my lights.”
“Yeah, he has a point,” Art said. “I’ll have the agent reassure him when they meet.”
“He told me if it weren’t such bad timing, he’d make Reynolds go to their house in Charleston.”
Art tapped his chin. “That’s actually not a bad idea.”
“She won’t go,” Acer said. “It’s too close to the end of the season and she’ll refuse to leave Brax. Reynolds is stubborn.”
“Is your brother traveling a lot?”
“I don’t know. I’m not familiar with his schedule but you can ask when he drops off my things.”
I helped him out here. “They are. They have two away games coming up,” I said. Pulling out my phone, I tapped into my calendar and rattled off the dates.
“Thanks. Maybe we should move her in with you two,” Art suggested.
“It’s fine with me,” Acer said.
“Can the place manage three of us?”
“It has four bedrooms. The guys may have to bunk together, but you ladies will have your own rooms.”
I shrugged. It was good by me. “One thing, though, in bringing her there. Won’t that put her in more danger?”
“Possibly. But at least we’d have eyes on her, instead of her being alone.”
“I don’t know, Art. It worries me a
little,” I admitted. With her there, that was one more body in the mix. “I think she’s safer where she is. Put a guy outside her place and call it a day.”
We debated the issue and decided it was best to keep her at home. We’d send an agent or two up there and Brax would hire someone for inside. He phoned Acer and said, “I could wring your neck for this. I told you Paulie was trouble.”
“I’m sorry, man. I didn’t mean for this to happen.”
“Yeah, Ace, I’ve heard that shit before.”
“No, honestly, Brax. I only went up there because I was worried about him.”
“And when was he ever worried about you? Swear to God, if anything happens to Ren, I will never forgive you.” He practically spat out the words. Then Acer said, “Sorry about that. I shouldn’t have had that on speaker.”
“I’d say your brother is one pissed off man,” Art said.
“Really, Art?” He didn’t need to go there.
“I’ve really fucked up. And what else is new? This is all he’s ever seen from me.”
“Hey, stop that. You’re on your way to a new life.”
Art’s brows rose. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Acer is going to finish school so he can apply to the bureau.”
With more than a tiny bit of sarcasm, Art said, “Oh, and this is your lucky day. You get to meet the director of the southeastern units along with the director of the northeast. This should put you miles ahead.” Acer withered at his statement.
“It wasn’t his fault. Remember?” I asked. “Can we get back to the safe house issue?”
“No. Right now you need to get prepared for questioning. Those two directors should be here in another hour and I want to make sure you’re on top of your game.”
“No worries. I’ve got this.” But did I? I had been the one to screw up. What I should’ve done was tell Acer we needed to leave, or better yet, drove on and not stopped at all. I saw the cars and the potential danger staring us in the face. Yet I parked and we went in through the back, where it was equally as dangerous, if not more so. I even told Acer myself it was. I had cautioned him about everything but hadn’t heeded my own advice. Look where it got me. Damn, Isla, didn’t you learn anything in Quantico? You were at the top of your class for what? To land you in a shit pile of trouble.