Total pages in book: 83
Estimated words: 82187 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 411(@200wpm)___ 329(@250wpm)___ 274(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 82187 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 411(@200wpm)___ 329(@250wpm)___ 274(@300wpm)
Footsteps and curses could be heard coming toward them, and Wes almost shit himself as he and Law took the stairs back up two at a time.
Law held his hand tight as he cracked open the hallway door and peeked inside. Once he saw it was clear, he moved them slowly down the stuffy hallway.
“Now what?” Wes said. “Free. Free. Now what do you—”
Windows exploded inward from two empty apartments on both sides of them with the power of a cannon blast. Glass, debris, and dust rained down around him like a shattering chandelier.
Wes froze as Law dove on top of him, taking them both to the floor.
“I got ’em, Free,” a woman said in a loud, confident voice.
“Wes, Law, it’s Dinah, go with her,” Free ordered.
“Let’s move you two,” Dinah barked as she stood in front of a team of five. “You can nap later.”
He didn’t hear any more gunshots as they were hustled down the last few floors of the building and out of the front door.
The entire street was lit up brighter than the Fourth of July in New York City.
Lawson (Law) Sheppard
Back at headquarters, it was chaos.
Law sat with Wes damn near on his lap as they watched God glare unblinking at one of the screens Free had enlarged so they could replay the entire operation.
“We weren’t supposed to have all this activity.” Day pointed at men speeding up to the front of the building, in SUVs, with weapons ready. “Somehow, Mercer was tipped off.”
Law slumped in the chair, sweating, hands still shaking.
While the lieutenants had a heated conversation with Hart and some guy called Fox on a FaceTime call, Syn was going over the information they were able to retrieve from the warrant.
“God, things may’ve gotten louder than we wanted, but we got some seriously incriminating information.” Free was printing out some documents. “Shipping logs, collection routes, drops…it’s all here. They were tipped off, yeah, but not early enough to get in and get the evidence out.”
Day turned back to the handsome man on the screen. “Fox, see if you can find any outgoing calls or emails from the precinct within two hours of our go-time.”
“You got it,” Fox said. “I’ll also check all personal phone records if any calls were sent to burner phones.”
“That’s illegal,” Hart droned in the least authoritative voice ever.
“Yeah, yeah,” Fox nodded before he disconnected.
Law wondered who that guy was, but he chalked it up to God and Day having unlimited personnel and resources at their disposal.
Speaking of disposal…
“Hey.” Law leaned over and whispered to Ruxs. “What happened to the last consultant who worked for y’all…um…the crime scene specialist?”
Ruxs frowned. “What scene specialist…? Someone from forensics?”
Wes shook his head. “No, he didn’t work for the department. He was someone you guys brought in…a student.”
“Oh, he’s talking about Scott Jacobs.” Green answered. “That weird, super smart, Adrian Monk dude who graduated Penn State?”
Ruxs laughed.
What was so damn funny? The guy was murdered under their watch.
Like he and Wes were going to be.
Law scowled. “So much for compassion and decency for the guy.”
“Decency?” Green frowned. “If you call a two-hundred-thousand-dollar-a-year salary just decent, then okay. I guess that would be considered crumbs to two men who are about to make triple what you used to make in Hollywood when you go back.”
“Wait, the forensics guy isn’t dead?” Wes sat up taller.
Tech turned from his computer. “Dead? No, he’s not dead. God got him an intel clearance level job at the DOJ in Washington.”
Steele climbed down from the side of Tech’s desk, staring hard at them with those cruel, assessing eyes.
“Why would you think Jacobs was dead?” he asked darkly. “How do you even know that name?”
Before he could respond, God barked, “Law, Wes, get out of your gear and go home. I want you both back here at zero eight hundred. Shit got crazy tonight. I need you to decompress and get your heads right before tomorrow’s debriefing.”
Back by eight…? It’s already four!
Law grabbed Wes by his bicep and pulled him out of the door behind him, feeling Steele’s frightening gaze on the back of his head.
“What the hell did we do, Law?” Wes asked when they were inside his truck. “Did we get played by that other cop? What was his name? Um…Vasquez. Did we—”
“Couldn’t’ve been him. That guy was solid. There are tons of police officers in this precinct. You saw all those people out there when we came out. Anyone could’ve said something. There’s no way we caused any of that.”
“Then why’d Vasquez tell us that forensics guy was tortured and killed when it was obviously a lie?”
Law thought of Vasquez’s smile when he’d turned and left the breakroom.
I have no fuckin’ clue.
The familiar metallic stink of Wes’s basement had never smelled so good.
He nor Wes had said another word since they’d left the parking lot.